Obliquity
by WishingWellWarrior
Summary: Set in an alternate Remnant, Team RWBY comes across a boy who they discover was genetically experimented upon and is a Grimm-human hybrid. The team tries to figure out where he came from, why people are being experimented upon, and how to stop the experiments.
1. Chapter 1: An Unfortunate Encounter

It was a cool day for it being May, but to Team RWBY it was a good way to start their summer. They had just finished their first year at Beacon, and were in high spirits after they were recognized for their high level of performance over the past year by their fellow classmates and teachers. They were known for their great advances in tactics, grades and combat. Their willingness to assist others, however, is what they were the most known for around Beacon.

Team RWBY decided that a good way to spend their first day of summer, and to celebrate their achievements, was to go into Vale for the day. After a hearty dinner at a pricey restaurant (which tore into all of the teams wallets) they decided to return to Beacon.

"Go home Yang, you're drunk." Weiss teased.

"I am not!" Yang retorted.

"Oh yeah? One drink of soda and you make a huge scene in the restaurant as if you are?"

"They gave me a DIET soda, not a regular one. That is not OK. What would you do?"

"I would order a water, like I always do. You can't mess that up."

"Oh I'll mess something up!"

"Guys!" Ruby interjected "Let's just get home before you guys make another scene."

Yang squinted at Ruby. "Fine. But you know I'll mess you up Ice Queen." Weiss scoffed. Yang glared at Weiss. The team continued towards the airship dock in silence.

They rounded the corner, and the airship dock came into view. The four girls walked in a line since there was no one else on the sidewalk. They were coincidently lined up in the order of their team name, with Ruby on the innermost side closest to the buildings and Yang closest to the street. Blake hung back a little from the rest of the group, so if Weiss and Yang got into a fight she could easily avoid it. There was an awkward air hanging around them since no one had spoken since Weiss and Yang had their argument. The team arrived at the platform and sat down, waiting for the airship to arrive that would take them to Beacon. They remained in silence until they boarded the airship. Blake spoke as soon as the doors closed.

"Did anyone else see that guy following us?"

"There was a guy following us?" Weiss asked

"Yeah. I saw him out of the corner of my eye. I think he might have been a Faunus because it looked like he had a tail."

"What did he look like?"

"I can't say for sure. He was wearing a black hoodie with the hood on so I couldn't see his face."

"Where is her now? Did he get on?!" Weiss looked around frantically

"I'm not too sure, I think he ducked into an alley or something a ways back because I didn't see him on the platform."

"Let's hope so."

The team sat in silence once more, but only for a few seconds. Ruby began to scream, but she was quickly muffled by something. Yang stood up and put her hands up in a boxing position, but forgot that she, and the rest of the team, did not bring their weapons with them since they were not expecting to fight anyone. Yang figured her fists could do enough damage anyways. The team looked towards where Ruby was sitting.

Ruby was currently being held face up on the floor. There was a man on top of her with his left hand covering her mouth and his right hand holding a small revolver to her forehead. He was wearing a black hoodie, black jeans, and yellow and black sneakers. There were several rips in his hoodie and his hands were covered in blood, some of which appeared to be fresh. His face was hidden by the shadow that his hood created, but it was obvious that he had green eyes since they shone like emeralds.

"How's your evening, girls?" the man said. His voice was rough and raspy, as if he hadn't had anything to drink for days.

"Let her go!" Yang cried, and took a step forward.

"I would sit down if I were you, or else." he pushed the gun against Ruby's forehead, and she let out a slight cry. Yang stood in place for a second, the slumped back down into her seat angrily.

"What do you want, money? We spent it all." Weiss snapped

"No. I want to know where we are going."

The group members looked at each other, occasionally nodding as if they were talking to each other telepathically..

"Were going somewhere that we go to often. It's heavily guarded, and you probably won't make it off this airship if you keep her down." Blake said cooly

"Where are we going? Tell me!" he pushed the gun against Ruby's head again. The man coughed, and blood flew from his mouth. Blake thought for a second, then answered him.

"We are going to a school. There's an infirmary there. You let her go, and we'll get you there without any trouble."

"Y..yeah!" Weiss added "There's also food and water that you can have! Just let our friend go."

The man thought for a moment, then sprung off of Ruby, gun still in hand. He quickly moved to the far back of the airship, his gun still pointed at them. Ruby sat up and crawled backwards towards the rest of her team, never taking her eyes off of the man. When she made it to them, Yang quickly grabbed Ruby and set her in between her legs. She whispered something in her ear, and Ruby nodded. The rest of the airship was silent, except for the occasional heavy cough from the stranger.

When the airship landed, the girls all ran off the ship. This caused the man to panic and chase after them. On the dock he was greeted by a light blonde, middle aged woman with green eyes and a silver haired man with a cup of coffee and a cane. He could see the girls standing behind them, all with various weapons in hand that they did not have on the airship. The silver haired man spoke first. "Hello. Who might you be?"

"What's it matter to…" he was cut off by a violent cough that sent blood flying from his mouth.

After the coughing ended, he tried again "What's it matter to you?"

"Well if I know your name, I can get you booked into the infirmary which I can tell you need"

The man thought for a moment "Where is it? I want to see it first."

The lady looked at the green haired man "Ozpin you can't really…."

"It's OK Glynda, it's the least we can do to someone like him."

"What are you talking about…" the man was stopped by another set of violent coughs which sent him crumpling to the floor. The lady sighed and stormed off. "Ruby, take your team to your dorm." The four girls from the airship looked at the boy again, then at the silver haired man, then turned and left as two paramedics arrived.

* * *

The next morning, Ruby was awoken earlier than she had expected to her scroll buzzing. She unlocked it and checked the time. 8 am. Too early to get up in the summer. She opened up the message and read the sender's name to herself. _'It's from Ozpin, I wonder what he wants this early in the morning.'_ She quickly read over the message, which was only a few lines long _'He wants to talk to me now? I just got up. Maybe he can wait a few minutes while I shower and get dressed.'_ Ruby showered and changed out of her pajamas, then checked her scroll again. The time was 8:30. Maybe she had taken a little longer than she had expected. _'Hopefully Ozpin won't be too mad.'_ she thought as she crept out of the dorm, attempting not to wake the others.

She made her way to the large tower that was visible from anywhere on the Beacon campus. When she got to it's base, she entered into the lobby area and made her way to the elevator. She entered the elevator, and pressed the button that read "Top Floor - Ozpin" on it. A electronic voice from a small speaker by the buttons said "Scroll please." Ruby held her scroll up to the scanner, and the scanner made a dinging sound. "Good morning Ruby Rose." the elevator said, and began to ascend. Ruby waited in silence as the elevator swiftly rose. The elevator reached the selected floor, and the door opened. Ruby stepped out into Ozpin's office and saw that he was sitting behind his desk, reading something on one of the many monitors that was both above and in the desk.

"Good morning Ms. Rose. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes? Well as good as one can sleep after something like that, I guess."

"Yes. Something like that must have been very terrifying, especially for someone as young as you."

"Y..yeah I guess it was." she rubbed the back of her head and laughed nervously.

"I called you in here today for two reasons. The first is to give you a chance to recount the events last night to the best of your ability for our records. The second is to let you make a choice."

"A choice?"

"Yes. We can talk about that later. For now, let's talk about last night."

Ruby recounted the events to the best of her ability to Ozpin. After she had finished, there was a brief silence, then Ozpin spoke softly, almost to himself.

"That doesn't explain why he.." He spoke louder "Did you ever see his face?"

"No, just his eyes. They were super green. It seemed like his face was always in a shadow though…"

He stood up and walked towards the large window behind his desk, looking out of it. "Ruby, do you know how often an event like this occurs?"

"Umm...never?"

"That's right. It is because most of the time people can tell who is a hunter or huntress, so would-be-muggers tend to stay away from them because they know they stand no chance against them. Even if the hunter or huntress does not have their weapon on their person."

"Well that makes sense."

"Yes, but I'm thinking that this boy wasn't a mugger, rather he was trying to escape from something or someone. You said he did not want money when Ms. Schnee asked what he wanted?"

"Well yeah, but he's a boy? I thought that was a man."

Ozpin sighed "Yes, Ruby. He is 16, not much older than you."

Ruby stood in disbelief "He was so tall though."

"Have you had a look at Mr. Ark?"

"Good point."

"He was heavily wounded when he arrived, but his wounds were all defensive in nature. As if he was blocking strikes without fighting back. When he awoke this morning in the infirmary, we had him strapped him down since we did not know what he would do. He asked us to take the bindings off of him, and after a little convincing one of our nurses took them off. You know what happened?"

Ruby remained silent. Ozpin continued

"He stayed in his bed, he didn't hurt anyone. What happened last night wasn't meant to be violent by nature. It was turned out to be violent because he wanted to survive. He was desperate for a way to get food, water, and medical attention. That is why, I believe, when your team offered him medical attention and food he backed off."

Ozpin paused for a second, then continued.

"I talked with him this morning. He said he never meant to hurt any of you. His 'gun' was a replica. He also expressed interest in joining your team. He said he saw something in the way your team handled the situation that made him have hope. Which brings us to the second reason I called you here. As team leader, and the victim, it is your choice whether he gets to stay here and help your team, and other teams, during missions or if we send him back into the world."

Ruby thought for a moment. Before she could give her answer, Ozpin spoke.

"Let me ask you this" he turned around and looked her in the eyes "Ruby, do you think even the worst person can change? That everyone can be a good person if they try?"

Ruby thought again, then answered timidly "Yes."

"So you want him to stay?"

"Yes." she answered strongly.

"Very well. I will assign him a room near yours if possible, I don't think your teammates would want a teenage boy in a room full of girls. As soon as he gets out of the infirmary I will notify you and your team so you can meet him. You may leave if you wish, unless you have any questions."

"I don't have any question, thank you though." Ruby then turned around, entered the elevator. Before the doors could close, Ruby say Ozpin pull up an image on one of the monitors. It appeared to be an arm that was heavily tattooed and wrapped in bandages. She heard Ozpin mutter something, but couldn't make out what he said as the doors closed all the way and the elevator began to descend.


	2. Chapter 2: A New Addition

"You what!?" Weiss cried.

"If you weren't my sister…" Yang said angrily, shaking her head. Blake was silent.

"Guys, I promise he won't hurt any of us. Ozpin had some good points, and I truly believe that he can be a good person!" Ruby exclaimed, on the verge of tears "The least you guys can do is hear his side of the story before making assumptions!"

"She's right guys," Blake piped up "I know what it's like to be judged for little or no reason." She pointed at her cat ears and looked Yang and Weiss in the eyes. Weiss huffed and turned away and Yang looked at the floor. There was a heavy silence hanging in the air, but it was broken by the buzzing of a scroll. Each member of the team checked their scroll, and everyone but Ruby put it away once they saw it wasn't theirs that had buzzed. After a few seconds, Ruby too put her scroll away and stood up from the chair she was sitting in.

"Who was it? Ozpin again?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah." Ruby replied "He said that the boy from last night wanted to talk to me in the infirmary."

"We're coming with you!" Yang shouted "I've got a bone to pick with this guy." She cracked her knuckles.

"Yang, let Ruby handle this one." Blake said calmly, grabbing Yang's shoulder. She looked towards Ruby "Ozpin will be there, right?"

"Yeah, I'm sure he will! I'll be fine Yang, nothing to worry about!"

Yang looked at her for a second, then turned away "Fine, but if anything happens to you I'm going to kill that boy. Got it?"

"Yeah, I get it." Ruby said quietly. She left the room silently.

* * *

Ruby arrived at the infirmary and was greeted by one of the attendants, who then showed Ruby to the room that the boy was currently staying in. Ozpin was standing outside the room, and when he saw Ruby he took a sip of coffee and greeted her.  
"Good morning again, Ms. Rose. I was not expecting to have to call upon you again this soon, but it seems that he awoke sooner than we had expected. One of our nurses checked on him while we were talking, and he asked for you. He's just inside. I'll be out here if you need anything, just call." He opened the door for her, and once she had entered he closed it again.

The first thing Ruby noticed about the room was it's smell. The smell was different from the rest of the infirmary. While out in the hallway it smelled like clean linen, in the room it smelled like a mixture of jasmine and, surprisingly, chocolate chip pancakes. There was a curtain dividing the room in half, with the door on one side and the bed on the other. Ruby approached the curtain and slid it back, revealing the bed and the boy that lay behind it.

The boy was asleep, so Ruby took some time to notice a few key features about him. He had light brown hair and she knew he had green eyes from the night before. Though most of his body was covered by the bed sheets, she could see his arms which were above the covers. While most of his arms were covered in bandages, she could see that the parts that were exposed had what appeared to be a solid black tattoo on them. The tattoo appeared to have no real shape or form, it just seemed to move in lines that went in random directions, with no noticeable center to it. Then she noticed that the tattoos actually MOVED. It was slowly, but she could tell that they were changing their position on his arms. ' _I wonder if his whole body is covered in those.'_ she thought, shivering slightly. Ruby took a step towards the sleeping boy to get a better look at the tattoos, but her shoes squeaked on the clean floor which caused the boy to stir and awake.

His eyes opened slowly, and Ruby could have sworn that they turned every color in the rainbow before stopping on the same emerald green they were the night before. She gasped slightly, which caused the boy to turn and look at her. He stared for a few seconds before speaking.

"Morning sunshine, how are you?"

Ruby looked away from him, then timidly said "I'm doing alright. I'm Ruby, what's your name?"

The boy turned onto his side to face Ruby, who was looking around the room nervously. "I'm Jace, nice to meet you!" He stretched out his hand to Ruby. She looked at it for a second, observing the tattoos on his hand before she took his hand in hers and gave it a good shake. The boy cringed.

"Oh Dust, I forgot your hurt! I'm so sorry!"

"Ah it's nothing really, just a bit sore now, that's all." He smiled at her, and she smiled timidly back. "I'm going to start off by saying sorry for what I did to you on the airship, I didn't mean anything by it."

"I know you didn't, Ozpin explained a lot of it to me. I probably trust you more than my teammates though…"

"Ozpin? Is that the silver haired dude? That guy has a hella-sick cane. Were those other girls on the airship your teammates?"

Ruby nodded, then filled him in on who the rest of her team was and how they felt about him.

"So the white-haired girl and the yellow-haired girl who's your sister, Weiss and Yang, hate me. The cat-girl, Blake, sympathises with me?"

"Yeah that seems right. I just hope that when you meet Weiss and Yang that they won't kill you. Especially Yang, she's my sister."

"Damn, that really lessens my chance to get with the white-haired one. I won't blame them if they want to kill me. From the way you guys reacted I can tell you're close."

"Yeah, we've been a team for the past year."

"So when do I get to meet them?"

"I guess as soon as you get better and they release you from here."

"Or they could come here?"

"I don't know about that, Yang's still pretty heated and I don't know how bad Weiss hates you. I just know she seemed pretty mad at my mentioning of you."

"C'mon let's just see what happens. Who knows, it might be fun!"

Ruby sighed. After a moment she spoke "Fine, I guess. Lemme give them a call." She pulled out her scroll, pressed a few buttons, then held it up to her ear. "If anything happens, it's on you." Jace shrugged. After a few seconds, she began talking to someone on the other end of the line.

"Hello?...Yeah everything's OK, he wanted to meet you guys and...No, Ozpin's here but...I know but he insisted that...OK but...Don't let her bring her gauntlets because...Yeah, OK, Bye!"

"Who was that?"

"Blake. I figured she'd be the best one to call since she kinda knows how you feel."

"OK cool. So who wears the gauntlets?"

"Yang, Weiss uses a rapier."

"Fun. Both have weapons that can probably easily kill me." Jace laughed, then laid back down to wait for the rest of the team to arrive. "I am truly a goner."

* * *

It was obvious when the rest of the team arrived, because Yang practically kicked the door down as she entered.

"Where is he! That bastard!" Yang shouted as soon as she entered, Ember Celica at the ready.

"Yang!" Ruby cried "Calm down! He's really not that bad, I swear! Just talk to him first."

Yang stared at the boy, who appeared to be sleeping. She approached him, and retracted Ember Celica. She stared at him as if she intended to hurt him.

"Yang no!" Ruby cried, but it seemed to be too late. Yang moved her hand, but instead of hitting the boy she knocked a spider away that was dangling from the ceiling. She then sat down in a chair next to the bed and huffed. The boy opened one eye and smiled goofily.

"I knew you didn't have it in you."

"What?" Yang retorted, jumping up "I could take you down right now if I wanted."

"I know you can, but you won't 'cause your sister is right there." He pointed at Ruby.

Yang looked at him, and it was obvious to everyone in the room that she wanted to punch him in the face numerous times.

"Anyways," he continued "My names Jace, and you are Weiss, Blake, and Yang." He pointed to each one, respectively. "And half of the people in this room hate me right now!"

"How did you...Ruby?!" Weiss asked "How much does he know?"

"As much as she told me, am I right?" Jace interjected, laughing at his own joke.

"Hey! I'm the only one who can make puns around here!" Yang shouted. Jace laughed again.

Yang huffed. "You better watch your mouth. I don't mind beating up a wounded guy."

"OK, OK. I'll leave the puns to you, and I"ll just make terrible jokes. Sound good?"

"Jokes are puns too."

"Fine. I'll just make puns when you don't."

Yang squinted at him. "As soon as you get better, you and I are going to fight, and I don't care who's watching."

"Fine." Jace smiled and laughed. "I'll take you up on that offer."

Yang stood up "I'm done here, I'll be in the dorm if you guys need me." She then started to walk out of the room, but Ruby stopped her.

"You should stay, maybe learn a few things about him. He IS joining us on missions you know."

Yang stared at her for a second, then sighed and pulled a chair into the corner of the room and sat down. Ruby smiled at her and sat down herself.

"So Jace," Ruby began, as if she was a reporter "Tell them your name and a little about yourself."

"Hi girls, I'm Jace Midori. I'm a boy, I'm 6' 2" and I have O- blood. I'm 16 years old and..."

"Can we get on to actual info about you?" Weiss interjected.

Jace frowned, then continued "...and I'm a faunus."

The girls all had confused looks on their faces. After a few seconds, Blake spoke in a slightly agitated tone "Where's your ears? Or tail? Or anything that could label you a faunus?"

Jace sighed and sat up in the bed. He then swung his legs around so they were hanging off the bed, and he stood up. He was only wearing a pair of white shorts and a white t-shirt, which were provided by the hospital. He turned around and faced away from the girls, grabbed the hem of his shirt, and pulled it off. "What are you doing you perv..." Weiss began to shout, but she trailed off. The girls sat in astonishment for a few seconds, looking at his back which was covered in tiny scales that shimmered in the light.

"I'm a chameleon faunus guys, calm down. It's not that impressive really."

"But they…" Black cleared her throat and spoke louder "But chameleon faunus are very, VERY rare. They only exist on Menagerie. Is that where you're from?"

"I'm not sure. I was...well...I was sold off at a very young age, so I'm not sure where I'm from."

The team was silent again, so Jace continued.

"I grew up on a military base. When I was five the military training started. When I was eight…"

He paused and looked at the floor "The experiments started."  
"They experimented on you? Why? Because you're a faunus!?" Blake was standing at this point, completely enraged. Jace looked her in the eye

"No. They did it to all of us."

"What does 'All of us' mean?" Blake asked, slowly sitting back down

"Everyone who was there and younger than 10. There had to have been at least 20 of us. They were…"

He looked down at his arms and then his legs, which were covered in black lines and swirls, all of which seemed to move.

"Not everyone could handle it...my best friend…" He took a shaky breath "You guys should see what they did for yourselves. Please don't be afraid, I can control it."

"Don't be afraid of what?" Weiss asked in a slightly terrified tone.

"I knew you guys should have brought your weapons…" Yang mumbled from the corner.

"Guys, I cannot easily put into words what they did. You have to see."

Ruby stood up, and faced the team "We need to trust him guys. Letting him do this is going to be a huge step towards him trusting us and us trusting him." She turned towards Jace and smiled "I know you won't hurt us, right?"

Jace smiled back "I won't, I promise. Now you may want to move back a little."

The girls all scooted back a few inches, getting almost against the opposite wall of the room. Jace moved a step away from the bed, then held his arms out in front of him. His arms were outstretched, with his hands about three feet apart and his palms parallel to the wall. He closed his eyes, and the black lines on his arms began to glow faintly. The glowing became brighter, and his arms began to expand and lengthen, causing the bandages to tear off. His hands grew larger, and his fingers lengthened and seemed to become claws. After his arms and hands stopped growing, they began to grow black hair until they were completely covered in it. The glowing grew dim, then stopped after the transformation was complete.

The girls stared at his arms, which were now four and a half feet long each and covered in black hair. His hands were massive and also covered in black hair, and his fingers looked like sabers with joints.

"Wh...What are you?" Weiss asked, completely terrified.

"I'm what they made me." Jace said, in a slightly strained voice. "I'm one of _them_."

"That's impossible. Who would do such a thing?" Blake screamed.

"What, Blake? You know what he is?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah, well I can guess at least. Look at him. What does he look like?"

"Well, he looks like… He looks like a Grimm. He can't seriously be a Grimm, can he?"

"Like I said, some of us couldn't bear it." Jace rested his arms on the ground.

"So you really are part Grimm…"

Jace sighed and began to change his arms back. Once they returned to normal, the team noticed the scars and cuts that were present on them. "Yeah." He laid back down on his bed "I need to sleep now. Please leave."

"But we need to have some more questions." Ruby said.

"LEAVE. NOW." Jace yelled, his eyes changed from green to red in an instant. The girls all quickly left the room. Ozpin greeted them in the hallway outside. He spoke once the door was closed.

"I see he showed you his other half. It is truly a shame what happened to him. Whoever did that must be truly horrible."

"You knew about that!" Weiss cried "Why don't you warn us about these things!"

"Ms. Schnee, how did you feel about him before he showed you?"

"Well, I felt like I...like I could trust him."

"How do you feel now?"

"I feel scared! Grimm kill people, and we kill Grimm to protect people! Who would want to make a human Grimm?! And why?"

Ozpin took a sip of his coffee "Ms. Schnee, do you really think he intends to hurt any of you? To hurt anyone? He warned you, and the rest of your team, to move away. This put you closer to the door, which would make it easier for you to escape if he could not control himself. He is a brilliant tactician, he might not know it however. He only wants help, and if that means that he has to fight himself, then he will do it."

"Fight himself? What do you mean by that?"

"I have been looking into the matter with the doctors, and it seems that whatever they did to him is genetic. He can control the genes that activate and deactivate his Grimm side. Since he more than likely controls the genes with his brain, I believe that if he is in his Grimm form for too long his brain will begin to think like a Grimm and thus he will become a Grimm. I'm certain he dislikes being a Grimm as much as you dislike him being one. Much like what he did on the airship last night, I'm sure he used his actions to convey his thoughts. Not much of an orator, now is he?"

"Well why doesn't he just…"

Weiss was cut off by a thud coming from the other room. After a few seconds, there was another thud, and then what sounded like fabric ripping.

"What's going on?" Blake asked.

"I'm not sure." Ozpin answered. He looked in the window, took a sip of his coffee, then set his mug down on a nearby table.

"Professor Ozpin! What is happening?" Blake tried to look into the window, but Ozpin blocked it.

"I believe it is time for you to return to your dorm, Jace seems to be having complications." He signaled to two doctors who were standing down the hall. One ran into Jace's room, and the other entered an adjacent room then came back out after a few seconds with a cart full of medical equipment..

"But Professor…" Ruby began, watching the paramedics.

"Ms. Rose." Ozpin looked Ruby in the eyes "Please take your team back to your dorm. And if you pass Glynda, send her this way." He then opened the door, and groaning sounds could be heard momentarily before the door was closed again.

"Ruby, should we go back?" Yang asked.

"Yeah, but we can leave Ozpin in there by himself. What if he goes full Grimm? We should go and get our weapons, then come back. Sound good?"

"Now that's something I can get behind!" Yang said gleefully. "You guys go ahead, I'll wait here and hold down the fort."

The three girls began to run towards the front of the infirmary. Before they could make it to the entrance, they heard a door opening. Ruby turned around to see if it was Ozpin, and she stopped dead in her tracks. The other two girls continued to run ahead.

"Go on, Rubes!" Yang said, facing Ruby "You need to…" She looked at Ruby, who was looking past her. She turned and followed her gaze.

They saw that the door to Jace's room was open. Faintly, the girls could hear moaning, and they saw a liquid of some sort by the door. There was a flash of light from the room, followed by coughing. Then there was silence. After what seemed like an hour, Ozpin emerged from the room and picked up his mug from the floor. He straightened his jacket and looked at the two girls who were still standing there.

"Well if you are still here, you might as well as call the janitors. I seem to have spilled my coffee somehow."

"What happened in there?" Ruby asked.

Ozpin looked at her "I can explain it to your whole team whenever convenient. It seems that Jace also has a semblance, and he just showed it. What _will_ he do next?"

The two girls stood there, looking at each other. After a second Ruby pulled out her scroll and quickly sent a message to the other members of her team.

' _Don't get weapons, meet in the library. Ozpin wants to have a chat.'_

"Is the library an OK place for this talk?" Ruby asked after sending the message.

"Wherever works for the four of you."

"The library it is! They'll meet us there."

"Very well. Lead the way."


	3. Chapter 3: A Purple-Haired Psycho

**{AN} Hope you are enjoying the story so far! This is a longer chapter, and with my work schedule I've been unable to write most days. Anyways, here is chapter three. Language and violence warning. {END AN}**

Team RWBY sat silently around a table in the back corner of the library. Ozpin stood at the head of the table with a fresh cup of coffee in hand. He took a sip from his mug, then began speaking.

"I am not sure how much Ms. Rose told you, but I am sure you all want to know what is happening with your teammate."

"He's not our REAL teammate." Yang said angrily.

"While you are correct in that statement, I'm sure that everyone on your team would appreciate it if you at least put up with him Ms. Xiao Long." He looked her in the eye, then continued.

"It seems as though Mr. Midori also has a Semblance, and as you recently learned he has been genetically altered to be part Grimm. This change is no doubt difficult to control, but I believe that he can manipulate his Grimm form due to his Semblance. As you all know, a person's Semblance is a manifestation of their innate and personal power and derives from their innermost personality. A person's Semblance allows them to manipulate some force in the world, such as speed in Ms. Rose's' case. While current studies on the nature of Semblances say that they do not alter the user's physical body, it is clear that we still have much to learn."

"Just get on with it already. I could be doing better things." Yang yawned.

"Yang." Blake said sternly "At least try to not be rude for two minutes."

"Fine, but you owe me some of your time for wasting mine."

Blake rolled her eyes, then looked at her teammates "But seriously I'm sure we all learned how semblances worked, right guys?"

She looked at Ruby and Weiss, who were sitting across from her. Ruby was asleep and Weiss had a notepad and pen in hand and seemed to be eagerly awaiting Ozpin's description of Jace's Semblance. Blake sighed and looked at Ozpin "Please continue."

Ozpin cleared his throat "Mr. Midori's Semblance is mimicry."

"Really? Can't he do that 'cause he's a chameleon?" Yang asked.

"No. Chameleons do not mimic anything, they simply change colors to blend in with their environments. Mr. Midori was a level above chameleon camouflage"

"And what was his level?" Weiss asked eagerly.

"I can't say to what extent he can control it, but when I was in that room I had to do a double take. I could have sworn that each of you took turns lying on the floor in the same spot he did." He chuckled slightly "But I'm sure he could show you all just what I saw if you asked him. Now I wouldn't want to keep your team from lunch. I hear that they have chocolate chip cookies on the menu."

At the word cookies, Ruby awoke and jumped out of her seat. "C'mon guys! What if all the cookies are gone by the time we get there?! We have to go now!" She then sprinted off.

"Well I guess that's our cue, we'll be seeing you Ozpin." Yang said, jumping up to follow her sister. The other two girls got up and followed Yang, waving goodbye to Ozpin, who remained standing there for a few seconds before leaving the library.

* * *

The next day, around 6 p.m.

Team RWBY sat at their usual spot in the cafeteria and were finishing their food when Weiss nudged Blake in her side.

"Weiss, what was that for?"  
"That girl," Weiss whispered "she's been looking at me the whole time I've been eating. It's really creepy."

Blake followed Weiss' gaze to a girl sitting across the room. She had purple hair that was put up in two ponytails off the back of her head and touched the floor when she was sitting. Her eyes were a bright yellow that gave Blake shivers to look at. She was wearing the typical Beacon uniform, and it was obvious that she was staring at Weiss.

"Weiss, I don't know what to tell you. Just ignore her."

"I've been trying to, but I can feel her eyes on me even when I'm not looking at her."

"You should go over and talk to her, tell her to stop or something like that."

"I...I guess so." Weiss stood up, and began to walk over to the girl, who kept looking at Weiss. As she walked across the cafeteria, she passed by the table where Cardin was sitting, and someone tripped her. She stumbled slightly, but quickly regained her balance. Cardin spoke after seeing her trip.

"What's wrong Weiss? Can't walk past cute boys without stumbling? How embarrassing!"

"No, it's just the stench from you that caused me to die a little inside."

"By stench you mean the glorious smell of four warriors, right?"

His cronies burst out laughing, but the laughter was brought to an abrupt end when a plate smashed on the back of Cardin's head. Weiss looked up, and saw the purpled-haired girl standing of the table that she was sitting at earlier. She was wearing a black bikini top, black combat pants and black combat boots. Weiss could have swore that the girl was wearing the Beacon uniform just a second ago. Cardin followed Weiss' gaze, rubbing his head.

"Who's that, your slutty little guardian angel?"

"I actually don't know who she is." Weiss replied flatly.

"You really are a pest you know." Cardin called out to the girl. "I was just joking around." The cafeteria fell silent. After a few seconds, the girl spoke.  
"I can be a pest at times." Her voice was light and had no noticeable accent, and Weiss thought she sounded similar to Ruby, if she was a few years older.

"OK, so why don't you just sit back down so Ice Queen and I can finish what we started? Unless you are going to come over here and act like you're dressed."

He looked at Weiss, who practically vomited in her mouth at the thought of Cardin procreating. The girl's eyes narrowed, and the students sitting in between the two began to move, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire if a fight broke out.

"You want me to suck your dick? I'll be sure to bite it off so then you really will be a bitch."

Cardin stopped laughing. "What did you say?"

"I said 'You are going to be my bitch.'" she yelled

Cardin stood up "You have a deathwish? Or are you in love with Weiss, you lesbian." The girl held out her left hand towards Cardin, as if to point him out. She then raised her right hand to her temple, making a gun shape out of her fingers. After a second she pulled the imaginary trigger and moved her hand back a few inched from her head, mouthing the word "boom" as she did so.

"Look's like we have to teach her a lesson guys. Get her!" Cardin said to his teammates, who got up and charged at the girl.

Russel reached the girl first but was quickly dispatched by kick to the mouth, the girls boot making a sickening crack as it contacted his face. She jumped onto the floor and grabbed a steak knife from the table, sticking the knife into her right boot. Dove and Sky charged at her and she dodged Sky and grabbed him by the hair, pulling him to the ground. She looked up and was met with Dove's fist in her face. The girl was knocked over, and she released Sky's hair. She lay on her back a few feet from Dove, her hands up to her face. After a few seconds, she sat up and moved her hands away to reveal that she was bleeding heavily from her nose.

"Yeah! You like that? That's what you get for messing with Team CRDL!" Dove yelled. The girl smiled. "Why are you smiling? You want some more? Come get it!"

The girl ran towards Dove and Sky, who was now standing. Dove was in front of Sky, and as the girl reached him he swung at her again. He missed, so the girl took advantage and punched him in the throat. Sky grabbed the girl's arm and readied his fist, but the girl turned and spat a mouthful of blood into his face. Sky screamed and let her go and began to try to wipe the blood from his face. The girl kicked him in his groin and looked at Cardin, who was still standing by Weiss. Cardin looked around, and grabbed a nearby steak knife.

"D...Don't you come over here! I'll...I'll stab you! I mean it!"

The girl smiled, revealing that her teeth were covered in blood. "You really are a bitch." Blood flew from her mouth as she spoke.

"Wh...What do you mean by that? You're being the bitch here!"

The girl grabbed a cup and threw it at him. The cup landed and broke next to him, but he closed his eyes and tried to cover his face nonetheless. When he noticed that the girl had missed he began to laugh. After a second of laughing, he opened his eyes and saw the girl standing in front of him mere inches from his face.

"Boo." She whispered.

Cardin screamed and stumbling backwards, dropping his knife and falling to the ground. The girl jumped on top of him, pulling the steak knife out of her boot. She held the knife up in her right hand and looked up at Weiss, who was standing in horror. Weiss' hands were off to the left side of her body, just over her left shoulder. The girl saw this and repositioned her hand, then she brought the knife down and stabbed Cardin in his left shoulder. Cardin screamed and tried to grab his shoulder, but the girl had his arms pinned to his sides. She leaned down and whispered something into his ear, then got up and pulled the knife out of his shoulder and cast it aside. Her face and chest was covered in blood. She looked at Weiss again, then spoke.

"Hi! Your Weiss Schnee, and I'm Sashimasu. I need to go back to the infirmary, they might start wondering where I am if I'm gone too long. Plus Jace hates it when I'm like this. Bye!"

She winked at Weiss, then ran off. Weiss stood there in shock, and after a few seconds the rest of her team came to her side asking if she was OK or if she was hurt. Ozpin and Goodwitch arrived with Qrow and the paramedics moments later. Weiss was unsure how the girl was able to get past two hunters and a huntress without being stopped, not to mention all of the students that were fleeing the cafeteria. Ozpin and Goodwitch approached the girls as soon they saw them standing by Cardin, who hadn't moved since the girl spoke to him.

"What happened here? Everyone alright?" Qrow asked, looking at the girls. Ruby, Blake, and Yang all looked at Weiss who spoke after a second.

"Well I'm...not too sure really. It all happened so fast. I think she said something about Jace, and the infirmary?"

"Ms. Schnee, please tell us all you can, and Ms. Rose didn't you pass me as I was entering?" Ozpin asked.

"I've been here the whole time, I would never leave my teammates alone in a situation like this." Ruby answered.

"Hmmm." Ozpin turned to Qrow, who was standing next to him "Qrow, please go and find the Ruby that passed us as we entered. I would start with the infirmary, that is where Ms. Schnee said that the assailant was going."

Qrow nodded and left. Ozpin turned back to Weiss.

"Now, start where you remember the most."

Weiss recounted the events to the best of her memory, starting from the time she noticed the girl looking at her until the current moment. Once she was finished, Ozpin took a sip of his coffee and thought for a moment.

"Can you give a good description of the girl?" Goodwitch asked, who had joined in a few moments into Weiss's account after she had helped the paramedics with team CRDL.

"Well she had long purple hair that reached to her knees and was in two ponytails, yellow eyes, probably my age, about Yang's height. She was wearing a uniform I thought, but I saw her wearing a black bikini top and combat pants before she ran off."

Goodwitch entered this information into a large scroll she was holding. After she finished, she looked at Weiss.

"Did she tell you her name?"

"Yeah, I think she said it was Sashimatsu? Sushimatyou? It was hard to tell, there was blood in her mouth."

"Alright, thank you for the information. We will submit this information to the Vale Police Department so they can broadcast and APB later. Thank you for your cooperation." Goodwitch then left and began to gather accounts from other students in the area. Ozpin spoke to the girls after she left.

"If you see this girl again, please contact Qrow, Glynda, or myself as soon as possible. Do not be afraid to protect yourselves, but please be…"

"Ozpin, I found this in room 15!" Qrow called from the door, partially winded. He approached Ozpin and team RWBY holding a white and red towel in his hands. "This was shoved into the sink with the water running. There was a lot of blood in and around the toilet and the window was open." He showed the towel to Ozpin.

"Could that be the girls?" Yang asked..

"Room 15 was Jace's room right? Was he in there?" Ruby asked.

"Jace? That room was empty kiddo. If your friend was supposed to be in there, they weren't."

"Oh no, we have to go looking for him! Let's go!"

"Ms. Rose," Ozpin calmly interjected "Jace is in room 24. I had him moved after he complained of having the sun in his eyes every morning. You should check on him though, who knows where that girl could have gone. Just make sure you aren't defenceless this time."  
"OK professor Ozpin, we will find that girl if it takes all summer to do!"

The girls then headed to the locker room to get their weapons before going to the infirmary.

* * *

Team RWBY reached the infirmary, weapons in hand. They made their way through the halls to room 24, and as they approached the door they could hear what sounded like two people arguing inside. They quietly waited outside so they could hear the argument.

"...can't be doing that!" a male voice said.

"Why not? You know it was fun!" a female voice said.

"Yeah, it was kinda fun. But it was also dangerous! What if we got hurt?"

"We?" Yang mouthed to her teammates, who just shrugged and returned to listening to the argument.

"What did that accomplish? NOTHING." the male said.

"Oh, it did something alright. I protected our Snow Queen!"the female voice said.

"Our? Yeah, OK. Our Snow Queen. If she finds out, we are truly dead. No getting out of it this time. I doubt she even likes us in the first place."

"That's because you aren't letting me do the talking!"

"The only talking you do is with a knife."

"That's the best kind of talking!"  
"Using a knife isn't talking. It's acting."

"I speak with actions, just like you."

"But you aren't me."

"But I am. We were bonded by those scientists, remember."

"Shut up! If I could kill you, I would."

"Then do it! Just take a gun and…"

The voices in the room stopped, because out in the hallway Ruby sneezed. After a few seconds the door was opened by someone from inside the room. It was Jace. He opened the door partially to where only his face and upper body were visible.

"Hey guys. What are you doing here? Don't you have summer-y things to be doing?" he said nervously.

"We would, if someone didn't just attack team CRDL at dinner." Ruby replied "WE were just checking on you, making sure you were OK."

"Well I'm all good, thanks for the thought. Bye." he tried to close the door, but Yang put her foot in the frame, preventing it from being closed all the way.

"Hold up. I thought you had emerald green eyes." Yang said accusingly.

"Yeah." Blake added "When did you get a bloody nose?"

The rest of the team looked at his eyes, which were a yellow-green now instead of their usual emerald color, along with the little bit of blood that was around both of his nostrils.

"The little things…" Jace muttered. He sighed and let go of the door, quickly retreating into the room. Team RWBY entered the room which smelled strongly of jasmine, and looked around. They didn't see Jace in the room. After a few seconds, there was a rush of wind past them. The girls looked in the doorway, and saw Ruby standing in the frame. Ruby had one hand on the door handle, and the other at her side. Her head was down, casting a shadow over her face.

"Ruby, what are you doing?" Yang asked.

"I'm right here Yang." Ruby said at Yang's side.  
"What do you mean you were just..." she looked at the door again. Jace was standing in the door where Ruby once stood.

"Wait how did you do that?" Yang looked confused. "You just used her semblance."

"Please forgive me," Jace said "but I think you've seen enough for today. Please wait here until I sort this out."

"Jace, what are you doing?!" Weiss cried. Jace looked up at her and smiled partially, then closed the door.

"What do we do now?" Weiss asked.

"It's simple." Blake replied "These doors only lock from the inside, so we just walk out."  
"But how will we find him?"

"Zwei?" Ruby suggested.

"That might work. We could get some clothes of his or something." Weiss added

"Or we could just look outside the door and down the hall." Yang said, standing in the doorway.

The rest of the team walked over to the doorway and looked out. Jace was sitting behind a plant at the end of the hall.

"We can see you." Weiss said flatly.

"No you can't, I'm invisible." he replied.

Yang sighed and walked over to him. She reached down and grabbed him by his shirt collar and carried him back into the room. He tried to break free, but gave up once he knew he couldn't. He grabbed Yang's arm for a few seconds and his arm lit up temporarily, then he let go and shook his hand as if he had touched something hot. Yang threw him onto the bed once she was close enough to it, and Blake closed and locked the door once Yang was inside.

"We want answers, so speak." Yang demanded.

"Fine, but let's get on even ground shall we?" Jace sat up in the bed and smiled. In what seemed like only a second, he changed into Yang. He was wearing the same clothes she was currently wearing, which was her regular battle gear.

"Is this some sort of joke?"  
"No, I'm just showing you what I can do." He sounded just like Yang "You try to hurt me during this chat, you might just find a few less-than-desireable photos on the internet tomorrow. That goes for all of you."

"Why you little…" Yang stepped forward and raised her fist.

"I would stop if I were you." Jace changed what he was wearing, and his Yang-form was now wearing only short-shorts and a sports bra. Yang stopped dead in her tracks, took a few steps back, and collapsed into a chair.

"That's what I thought. Now, who has a question?" Yang raised her hand.  
"Yes, Yang?"  
"You're a pervert."

"I'm hurt. I would never do such a thing as use my morphs for my desires. Next question."

Yang raised her hand again.

"Yes, Yang?"

"Could you at least put some clothes on me?"

"OK, fine." Jace changed what his Yang form was wearing, which was a VERY small black bikini.. "You never said what to change into."

Yang stared at Jace, and the temperature in the room began to rise rapidly.

"You're no fun." He changed back into his regular form, and he was wearing the clothes the hospital gave him. "Next?" Weiss raised her hand.

"Weiss?"

"Who was that in the cafeteria?"  
"That was me." a female voice said from Jace's mouth.

"Stay out of this, you psycho." Jace snapped at the other voice.

"Why should I? I just want our Snow Princess to notice us." the female voice whined.

"Killing people doesn't put us in a good light." Jace said.

"Hey!" Weiss interjected "Answer the question!"

"Can I please talk to her in person?" the female voice asked.

Jace sighed "Fine, but make it quick. You know I hate being you."

"Yay!" the female voice exclaimed.

A second after the female voice cheered, Jace changed into a girl with purple hair and yellow eyes.

"You're the girl from the cafeteria?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah! My name is Sashimasu, but you can call me Sashi. I really care for you Weiss. You may not like me at all but I will always like you. I will literally do anything to protect you. Anything." she smiled crazily.

"That's terrifying." Weiss replied.

"OK, that's enough of you." Jace said.

"Aww, but I was having fun!" Sashimasu whined. Jace returned to his usual brown-haired, green-eyed self after a few seconds of weird body-shape melding. When he returned to his usual form, he was breathing heavily as if he had just ran a race.

"Why are you breathing so heavily all of a sudden?" Blake asked.

"I had…" he paused and held up his pointer finger, took a few more breaths, then continued "I had to retake my body, she was fighting me 'cause she's an arrogant little shit."

"Explain how _that_ works." Yang said, motioning to all of Jace "And why there is a girl inside you."  
Jace sighed "Well at the 'facility' I grew up in…"

"Where is this facility you grew up in anyways? And if it's as bad as you make it out to be, why did they let you go?" Yang interrupted.

"I'm not sure where it is. All I remember is it was snowy, and running for a long time until I collapsed."

"Really. You grew up there and that's all you remember?"

"Presently, yes."

Yang sighed "Continue your explanation."

"As I was saying, those scientists were messed up. They did some really weird experiments, and that's one of them." he changed his head into Sashimasu's and pointed at it. "They shoved brain parts of one of the girls who didn't make it through the experiments into my head, and since my Semblance allows me to look like other people, I kinda worked this thing out with her."

"We're two people in the same body!" Sashimasu said happily from Jace's mouth.

"Yeah. It is truly a blast having her inside my head." Jace replied dully.

"You know you like it. I know you do, especially when you get really horn…" Jace covered his mouth with his hands, and muffled out whatever Sashimasu was going to say. After she stopped talking, he lowered his hands.

"Let's not talk about that, OK? Anyways we basically have it worked out that I get to control my body most of the time, and she gets to stay in my head. Reading my thoughts and my deepest feelings. It's a parasitic relationship if you ask me."

"But I LOVE IT!" Sashimasu yelled out.

"So why did you say you had to fight her earlier?" Ruby asked.

"Sometimes she just gets needy and wants to stay in her form, so I have to take my own body back."

"Oh. That sounds kinda cruel."

"Mmm no not really. I'd say I'm in my form 75 percent of the time and her form 25 percent of the time, which is about how much of her that one can handle."

"That still sounds cruel. It should be 50-50 so both of you can do what you want." Blake said.  
"All she wants to do is kill anyone who comes near Weiss. I can literally hear her thinking that right now."

"That is not true!" Sashimasu cried "I only want to stab the people that come near her, not kill them!"

"Stabbing can kill people." Jace replied.

"Yeah, but not if you stab them in their legs!"

"I guess you have a point. Weiss, Sashi wants to go get dinner sometime. I'd really appreciate it if you went with her."

Weiss was caught off guard "Uhhhh like as in a date? Or just as friends?"

Jace and Sashimasu were silent, but the team could tell from the expressions forming on Jace's face that he was having an internal discussion with Sashimasu. After a moment, Jace spoke.

"Let's just go as friends for now, but maybe later we can move up to better things." he winked at Weiss. Weiss almost gagged at the thought of dating someone as perverted as Jace but when she thought of the possibilities that could arise with his Semblance, such as all the classes she could take, she giggled.

"Alright you love birds, snap out of it. We still got more questions." Yang said, snapping her fingers.

"Like what? That's really all there is to know about me. I can't answer any more questions about myself, unless you want to know how my day's been."

"How was your day?" Ruby asked.

"It was terrible. I woke up and had to fight with the purple-haired psycho for an hour before breakfast. At lunch I spilled my soda all over myself, and then you all saw how she acted at dinner. Then I learned that I couldn't escape like they do in the movies. How was your day?"

"Fine I guess."

"OK cool. I'm all tired now so if you guys don't have any more questions, I'm going to sleep. Feel free to look around the room. You might find some of Sashimasu's underwear or worse, her drawings. Who knows." he layed down and before any of the girls could say anything, he was snoring.

"Underwear? I thought he just made the clothes as part of his morph-things." Blake said.

"I dunno with this guy." Yang said "He's really an odd character."

"Yeah." Weiss agreed "He didn't even tell me when we were going out to eat. How rude."

"Oh well. Maybe he'll stop by our room later and fill you in on the details."

"I hope so."

"Let's just get going. I found one of those drawings in the bedside table." Blake said, holding up a piece of paper with a drawing on it. The drawing was in pencil, and though it was crude it was obviously a picture of Weiss as a cat. There was something written beside it, but it was illegible.

"Yeah, let's leave." Weiss agreed.

The girls left the infirmary and headed back to their dorm for the night.

* * *

The next day was uneventful for team RWBY until lunch time, when they ran into Jace as they were leaving the cafeteria.

"Jace? What are you doing here? Did they let you out of the infirmary?" Ruby asked after greeting him.

"Yeah." he replied "I got my own room now, it's just below your room. I got it all to myself."

"Technically I live there too." Sashimasu said through Jace.

"Technically you are me, so it doesn't count. Only got one body in the room." he retorted. Sashimasu was silent. "Anyways, I'm sure you guys may be wondering how I change my clothes for my morphs?"

"Yeah...wait did you hear me last night?" Blake asked.

Jace laughed nervously "Yeah, I wasn't actually asleep. I just wanted to get out of that conversation because it was getting awkward. You were correct in your assumption though."

"OK?"

"Oh and Weiss," he added "We are going tonight if that's alright.."  
"Tonight?! You really couldn't have told me last night so I could have been more prepared! How about tomorrow night?"

He shrugged "I guess. Sashi might be mad though. Oh well."

"Wait, I'm going with her?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I don't know if I want to go any more. Will she act the same way as she did yesterday?"

Jace thought for a moment "No. Probably not."

"Probably not? How reassuring."

Jace laughed "I'm sure it'll be fine."  
"You say that like you won't be there."

"I technically won't be there. I'm going to trust her and let her take control for the night."  
"Yep!" Sashimasu piped up from Jace's mouth "I promise I won't do anything stupid!"

"I hope so for both our sakes Sashi." Jace replied.

"I hope so too." Weiss added.

"I'll make sure she is at your room to pick you up by six tomorrow. Right now I could use some lunch, so I'm off. Bye guys!"

He began walking off towards the cafeteria, but stopped and turned around.

"Hey Yang!"

Yang turned to face him "What?"

"When are we going to fight?"

Yang thought for a moment "How about tomorrow morning."

"OK sounds good. I'll be sure to wipe the floor with your face!"

"Oh it's on now. Loser does the others laundry for a week."

Jace laughed, turned back around, and entered the cafeteria.

* * *

At seven o'clock the next morning, most of team RWBY was awoken by a knock on their door. Blake was the first one to fully get up. She was unsure who would be knocking on their door at seven in the morning during the summer, so she made sure Weiss and Ruby were awake before she even made a move to open the door. She would have liked to have Yang awake as well, but she remained asleep even after being shaken by Blake. Blake opened the door once Weiss and Ruby were up, and she saw Jace standing in the doorway.

"Jace, what are you doing here so early in the morning?" Blake asked, still somewhat asleep.

"I'm here to fight Yang. She said she wanted to fight this morning, right?" he peered into the room, and saw that Yang was still asleep. "Oh well, I guess she forfeits 'cause she's asleep."

As if on cue, Yang began to stir.

"I'm not asleep anymore, so I can't forfeit now!" Yang said, still mostly asleep.

"OK, then let's go to the courtyard and fight!"

"Why the courtyard?" Blake asked "We have an arena you know."

"Really? But the courtyard is more fun. Plus people get to watch from there."

"People get to watch in the arena too, and it's much safer."

Jace looked at her for a second "Fine. But only because people can watch there."

Blake facepalmed, and closed the door on Jace. She then began the difficult task of getting Yang up.

Jace decided to hold off the fight until nine so that Yang could fully awaken and get some breakfast. The remaining members of team RWBY and team JNPR were spectating, along with Professor Goodwitch who was overseeing the fight. Yang and Jace stood on opposite sides of the arena as Professor Goodwitch read the rules. Yang was wearing her typical combat gear, and Jace was wearing black jeans and a black hoodie, with black and yellow sneakers.

"This will be a one on one fight. First competitor whose aura drops below twenty percent, or is drained completely, loses. If at any point during the match I deem one of the competitors to be in a situation that could seriously injure or kill them, I will call off the match and intervene if necessary. If you understand these rules, raise your right hand."

Two right hands went up into the air.

"Begin!"

Yang charged Jace, who remained still. She reached him and swung at him with a right uppercut. Her fist made solid contact with his chin, and he went flying up into the air. He came falling back down and landed on the ground with a thud. Yang was confused.  
'Did I win already? He didn't even try.' Yang thought as she looked towards the board that displayed their auras. Hers was full, and Jace's was at 88%. Yang looked back to where Jace was lying. He still hadn't moved. Yang began to approach the spot where he was lying, but before she could reach him he stood up.

"Finally getting up are we? Can't take a little hit from a girl?" Yang taunted.

Jace scoffed "You ain't seen nothin yet."

"Nothin? That's how much laundry I'm going to be doing!"

Yang charged at him again, and swung for his chest. Jace jumped out of the way of her punch and swung his knee up, slamming it into her gut. Yang fell to the ground, gasping for air.

'Damn, how is he so fast?' she thought. She regained her breath and began to get up when she noticed rose petals on the ground.

'Rose petals? Is Ruby in here?' she followed the trail of petals, and saw that Jace was standing at the end of them. She stood fully up.

"So you can copy semblances too. Huh?"

Jace smiled "That I can, but only if I come into physical contact with the person, and even then it's difficult to copy them. Ruby just happened to trust me enough at the time I came in contact with her that I could feel her aura easier and copy it."

"I feel robbed." Ruby said quietly in the stands.

Yang looked at the aura meters again. Her aura was at 90% after one hit, but Jace's had dropped to 60% without him being hit again. She smiled.

"I see that using your semblance-copying-thing really takes a lot out of you."

Jace shook his head "Yeah, but I can beat you with only…" he looked at the board "60 percent."

Yang took a more defensive stance, readying her fists in front of her.

'All I have to do is hold out and make him use his copying-thing a lot, and I'll win by attrition.' she thought.

Jace ran at Yang. She readied her fists to block his strikes but as Jace reached her, he dived at her feet. She took a step back and readied a downward strike with her elbow, but before she could swing he reached her legs and knocked her down. Yang fell forward and thought she had the advantage by being on top of Jace, but as she tried to get up her feet wouldn't move. She rolled over onto her back, sat up, and looked at her legs. Her feet had somehow been handcuffed together.

"What the…" she began. She looked at Jace, who was standing a few feet away "How'd you get these on me?"

Jace smiled, his hands were in his hoodie pocket "I don't think that matters. You should focus on getting them off though. I've been talking with Sashi, and she is not happy with you right now."

"You've been...What? What do you mean?"

Jace pulled a small wooden rectangle out of his hoodie pocket, and began slowly walking towards her. After a few steps, his figure changed into that of Sashimasu. She was wearing the same clothes Jace was.

"I heard what you said about Weiss, you fiery demon lady. Now you will pay, preferably with your life." Sashimasu said calmly. She continued walking towards Yang, who began to struggle to get the handcuffs off her legs. The box that Jace once held was now held by Sashimasu, and as she was walking towards Yang the box turned into a large chef's knife. Yang struggled even more to escape as Sashimasu advanced towards her.

"Professor Goodwitch! Ruby! Anyone! HELP ME!" Yang screamed, but it seemed to fall on deaf ears. Sashimasu laughed.

"They can't hear you! Now DIE!" Sashimasu ran towards Yang, and Yang closed her eyes. She felt something hit her chest and bounce off, then she heard hysterical laughing beside her. She opened her eyes and looked down. There was no knife wounds anywhere on her chest or body. When she looked next to her she saw Sashimasu rolling around on the ground laughing hysterically.

"What…?" Yang asked, confused.

"OH MY GOD! THAT WAS SO FUNNY HOW YOU REACTED YANG! ZERO SURVIVAL SKILL!" Sashimasu practically screamed through laughter.

After a few minutes she composed herself and changed into Jace. He started laughing, but he got up off the floor and reached into his hoodie pocket and produced a small pair of bolt cutters which he held out towards Yang.

"You really think I'd kill you? You're funny. That reaction, on the other hand, was priceless." Jace said.

Yang took the cutters and cut the handcuffs off of her feet, then she got up. She looked towards where the teammates were sitting. Ruby was nowhere in sight, but her laughter could be heard echoing through the arena. Weiss was covering her mouth with one hand and giggling, and Blake was laughing lightly and shaking her head. Team JNPR sat in shock, but after a while Jaune and Pyrrha began to laugh. Nora pouted slightly that someone didn't get murdered, but was also happy that one of her friends didn't get murdered. Ren sat silently. Professor Goodwitch looked slightly amused, but showed no signs of laughing or enjoyment in the event that just occurred.

"What happened? There was a knife and Sashimasu…"

"The knife was fake, they use them in movies all the time." he handed the box to Yang. It was wooden and fit comfortably in her hand. There was a button on the side, which she pressed. A chef's knife popped out, but when she tried to touch the blade her hand went right through it.

"And I'm not really mad at you." Sashimasu said through Jace "I was just playing my part."

"Yeah." Jace said "I told them what I wanted to do, showed them the knife and stuff while you were still waking up. They were all in on it. Even Goodwitch, which surprised me."

Yang looked around at her teammates, then back at Jace. She punched him in the gut, sending him to his knees and knocking the wind out of him. "That's for pulling a stunt like that. An this-" She punched him in the face, sending him sprawling out onto the floor "-is for stealing my sisters semblance. Have fun doing my laundry."

After a moment, Jace sat up and coughed "Yeah, I feel I deserve that." Jace forced out, blood running down his face "See you later."

Yang left the arena angrily. Jace stood up after a second and began walking towards the locker room to clean the blood off his face and attend to his wounds. As he was about to enter the locker room, Blake appeared in front of him.

"Blake, what up? You trying to sneak into the locker room with me? How dirty." He smiled at her devilishly.

Blake sighed "No, I'm not. I saw something while you were fighting that needs explaining."

"What? You not like pranks? Shame.." Jace walked past her a few steps and continued towards the locker room.

"It's about what happened when you changed into Sashimasu."

Jace froze. "What do you mean?" he asked nervously.

"I saw the aura meter, and unless it is broken I believe you have something to tell me about Sashi."

"I'm not sure I know what you mean." he replied.

"I think you know what I mean. I can replay the footage if you'd like." she pulled out her scroll and opened the video.

Jace turned around slowly and looked at the scroll.

"Watch the aura meter right when you let Sashimasu take over. I know you can see it, so don't lie."

She started the video, and Jace watched it without moving. The video was taken from a camera off to the side so that the fight and the aura meter could be visible to viewers. The video played through the fight, but as Jace was about to turn into Sashimasu Blake paused the video.

"Now watch the aura meter closely. I'll even play it in slow motion so you can really see it."

She resumed the video in slow motion, and it was painfully obvious to Jace what she wanted to show him. As Jace changed into Sashimasu, the aura meter changed from 60% to 100% in an instant.

"Explain that." Blake said, pausing the video and putting her scroll away.

"Explain what?" he asked timidly. Blake looked at him harshly.

"Well Sashi was a warrior too?" Jace said, smiling nervously.

"Do you have two Semblances?"

"No?"

"I knew it. What is hers, unlimited aura?"

"Kinda. Her Semblance is resistance."  
"And that means?"

"It means that she doesn't get her aura drained from strikes like you and I, it only drains as she uses it to block things like bullets and stuff."

"Bullets. Really. Prove it." Blake drew Gambol Shroud and pointed it's pistol at him. Jace sighed.

"Fine, shoot then." He held his arms out and spread his legs apart slightly, as if to submit his body to the shot. He then changed into Sashimasu. Blake hesitated. She didn't want to shoot a defenceless person, especially someone who she was trying to trust.

"Well? Sashimasu asked. Blake lowered her gun slightly, aiming for her chest, closed her eyes, then fired. Blake opened her eyes a few seconds after firing and looked at Sashimasu. She stood there looking at Blake.

"You shot my boob. How rude." Sashimasu said, laughing slightly. Blake let out a sigh of relief.

"I guess you were right, I'm sorry to have been so rude."

"It's OK, I know that it's still hard to trust someone that can literally be everyone. Even you." Jace then changed from Sashimasu into Blake. "If anyone ever tells you to go fuck yourself, I can help you." He winked at Blake, then changed back into his usual form.

"You are such a pervert." Blake said, shaking her head "I'll remember that though."

Jace smiled crazily "Sashi says you owe her for shooting her boob."

"Does she like to read?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I might have a book that can satisfy her tastes."

"Is it Knights of Lust? I've read that already."

"No, Ninjas of Love."

Jace's mouth fell open. "I've been looking everywhere for that! I require it immediately!"

Blake laughed "Wash up first, then come up to my room later. My teammates don't know about it, and I'd like to keep it that way."

Jace nodded eagerly, then ran off to get cleaned up so he could hopefully get to reading sooner.


	4. Chapter 4: The Worst Dinner Date

**{AN} This chapter has some really gruesome stuff in it. Reader discretion is advised. Also there is a bit of zest towards the end {END AN}**

Jace spent the afternoon doing Yang's laundry, which seemed to multiply every time he came to get more. Eventually, he stopped cleaning the "dirty" clothes he was receiving because they were still folded and smelled clean. Yang insisted that the clothes were dirty, but Jace wasn't having it. He eventually stopped the cycle when he told Yang he was out of detergent, even though there was still plenty left. Yang doubted him, but she decided that having all her clothes washed twice in a day was enough. Jace finished cleaning around five, and went to his room to get Sashimasu ready for her dinner with Weiss.

Weiss had an easier afternoon than Jace, and she spent the time after the fight ended getting ready for her evening with Sashimasu. She didn't know why she felt the need to spend so much time getting ready as she was just going to dinner with a friend, not on a date. She tried to keep that in mind while she was deciding what to wear. She settled on a short sleeve, knee length white dress with the Schnee logo embroidered in white on the bottom. A pair of two inch white heels, and her usual off-center ponytail completed her outfit. She looked at the clock once she was ready, and it read 5:45. Sashimasu should be arriving any moment now, hopefully. Weiss sat down on her bed to wait for her to arrive.

"You nervous?" Ruby asked from above her, leaning over the bed to look at Weiss.

"Why would I be nervous?" Weiss replied "I'm just going to eat with a friend, so it's no different than if I was going out to eat with any of you guys."

"I guess so, but Sashi literally said she would do anything for you. Don't you think she has some sort of motive?"

"When did you get so good at determining relationships?"

"Uhhhh no comment." Ruby then quickly retreated back onto her bed.

Weiss got up and was about to ask Ruby again, but there was a knock on the door. It was gentle, but firm enough to be heard by Weiss and Ruby. Weiss went to the door and opened it, and Sashimasu was standing outside.

She was wearing a solid black sleeveless dress that reached her ankles, with a slit on the right side that reached from the bottom of the dress to halfway up her thigh. She was wearing three inch black sandal-style heels, and had her hair in a single braid off the back of her head.

"You look great!" Sashimasu said to Weiss once she saw her.

"I could say the same to you." Weiss replied.

"Thank you. Now let's get going, don't want to be late."

"Alright." Weiss waved to Ruby, who was playing a game on her scroll "Bye."

Ruby waved back "See ya." Weiss then left, closing the door behind her.

Weiss and Sashimasu walked through Beacon, making their way to the airship dock.

"Where are we going to eat?" Weiss asked.

"The Dinadeto." Sashimasu replied.

"The Dinadeto? I've never heard of it before."

"It's this place over in the industrial district that I know you'll love."

"The industrial district? Really? You couldn't have found somewhere in the commercial district?"

"C'mon, at least give it a try."

"Fine. But if something goes wrong, it's your fault."

"Nothing's going to happen, I hope."

Weiss rolled her eyes "Such confidence."

They arrived at the airship dock, and an airship was waiting for them. They boarded it and flew in silence. They arrived in Vale a few moments later, just outside the industrial district. After thanking the pilot they began making their way to the restaurant. They arrived at the restaurant just after six, and they stood outside. The building looked unextraordinary, as the building itself was a warehouse that was two stories high. There was a sign that read "Dinadeto" in neon above a set of steel double doors.

"Here we are." Sashimasu said "What do you think?"

"I think we are dressed too formal for this place." Weiss replied "It looks like a warehouse."

"We aren't. I read the reviews on Velp, and they all say that this place is crazy fancy."

"Really? Cause it still looks like a warehouse."

"Let's just go in and find out, shall we?"

"Alright, after you."

Sashimasu entered first, and held the door for Weiss. When Weiss entered, she wished she could have taken her comments back. The restaurant was the size of the warehouse, which was about two football fields long and a football field wide. The evening light was flowing in from windows on the roof, illuminating the whole restaurant with an orange hue. The most shocking part to Weiss was that it was not like a usual restaurant, as there was a massive indoor garden. There were a few groups of people sitting around the restaurant.

"Wow." Sashimasu breathed. Weiss was speechless. After a few moments, a waiter broke their silence.

"Hello! I can tell this is your first time dining with us, so on behalf of everyone here at the Dinadeto I welcome you! My name is Yubina and I will be your waiter for this evening. Please follow me to your table." The waiter was a man in his later years, with grey hair and a full grey beard. The girls followed them to their table. They sat close to the garden at a table of two.

"Since you are new to our restaurant, I will explain how dining goes here." Yubina explained "There is no menu to order from. The price to eat is 100 lien per person, and you can pay now or after the meal. The chef will make what he believes you would like based on your names and the time of year. This same system will also influence what you will drink, but water is always provided with your other drink. You may visit our garden anytime you would like, free of charge. Are there any questions?"

Sashimasu and Weiss both shook their heads, and the waiter continued.

"Perfect, now if I could get your names?"

"Sashimasu Midori."

"Weiss Schnee."

"Wonderful. I will get these to the chef and your food will be right out." The waiter then left.

After a moment, Sashimasu spoke "This place is amazing!"

"It really is." Weiss agreed, looking around "But I don't know if I like the way we get our food."

"I'm sure it'll be fine. I like the mystery"

As Sashimasu finished speaking, the waiter arrived with their drinks. He placed a small glass of water in front of of both of the girls. He then placed a glass that was slightly larger than the water glass in front of Sashimasu filled with a reddish-brown drink. In front of Weiss he placed a medium sized cup filled with a pink liquid in it.

"Alright, so I have a glass of water for both of you. For Ms. Schnee I have a Patch Breeze, which is cranberry and grapefruit juice with a hint of our house vodka. For Ms. Midori I have a house recipe called the Kurasuta. This is a splash of rum, a splash of tequila and a full can of G-Stank energy drink. Please enjoy." He bowed and left.

"I'm not sure if I can drink." Weiss said.

"You're 18 right?" Sashimasu asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"The legal drinking age is 18 in Vale I think."

"I think I'll pass."

"Suit yourself." Sashimasu shrugged and took a sip of her drink. "Wow that is strong."

Weiss laughed "Can't handle your alcohol?"

"Shut it, you won't even drink yours." Sashimasu retorted.

"You've got a point."

The waiter arrived with their food a moment after Weiss finished talking. He set their plates down in front of them, which were covered with silver lids.

"Here if your food. For Ms. Schnee we have pistachio dusted pan seared sea bass on our homemade crab salad with a lemon garnish. And for Ms. Midori we have double-cut lamb chops with a spicy red wine gastrique. Please enjoy." He bowed and left after removing the coverings from their food.

"Wow. That was fast." Wess said, astonished.

"Yeah. Now let's eat." Sashimasu said before digging into her food.

Weiss laughed and began eating her food.

The girls enjoyed their food in silence, and once they were finished the waiter returned to collect their plates and money. After the waiter left the girls decided to go for a walk through the indoor garden. There was one path around the whole park, which circled a pond that had various fish in it. They walked in silence for a bit, but after a while Weiss tried to strike up a conversation with Sashimasu.

"So why did you act like you did the other day in the cafeteria?" Weiss asked.

"Like I said, I really care for you. I just saw the opportunity to protect you and took it."

"That doesn't explain why you stabbed Cardin though."

Sashimasu shrugged "I was just going with it. It just felt natural."

Weiss shook her head "You are crazy."

"But I'm a protective kinda crazy, OK?"

"Whatever you say."

After a moment of silence, Weiss asked another question.

"So what was that outfit you wore in the cafeteria?"

"Oh that's my combat gear. I try to distract my opponents with my assets." She squeezed her boobs, and Weiss blushed and looked away.

"Oh. So are you like…one of those people?"

"Those people? You mean a voyeur? Nah, I just figure that if I got them on my body I might as well as use them in some way that is beneficial."

"I don't think I'd be brave enough for something like that."

"Eh I don't mind, especially around you." She winked at Weiss, who blushed again.

After another moment of silence, Weiss asked another question.

"Sashimasu, I have a serious question to ask you."

"Shoot."

"Are you a...umm...lesbian?"

Sashimasu thought for a second, then looked Weiss in the eyes and answered "Only if you want me to be."

Weiss was shocked. She knew that Sashimasu really liked her, but didn't know that it was enough for her to actually contemplate possibly changing her sexuality just to date her. Weiss felt somewhat honored knowing that.

"Are you?" Sashimasu asked.

Weiss was caught off guard by the question "I uhhh...I...well…"

Sashimasu laughed "It's alright, you don't have to answer that now. Just let me know whenever you make up your mind. Also, you can call me Sashi if you'd like."

Weiss smiled and nodded. The two girls continued their walk in silence, taking in the beauty of the indoor park. Weiss was happy that so far the night had been going smoothly, especially paired with some of Sashimasu's previous actions. The girls finished the loop around the park, and Weiss checked her scroll.

"Ten o'clock? We've really been here for four hours?" She said after checking the time.

"Time flies when you are having fun." Sashimasu replied, shrugging.

"I guess so. We should head back now, don't want to worry my teammates too much."

"You say that like they are your parents."

"Not really, if anything I'm more like a parent to them. Especially Ruby. That girl will not do work for the life of her."

Sashimasu laughed "Ruby and I have a lot in common then, we both hate working."

Weiss just shook her head as the two exited the restaurant. It was a cool evening, but still warm enough that the two could walk comfortably in their dresses. They began the walk back to the airship in silence, but after a while Weiss spoke.

"Shouldn't we have gone through a different district to get back to the dock? I hear that the industrial district isn't the safest place at night."

"I'm sure we'll be fine, the dock is only a few blocks away. What's the worst that could happen?"

The two girls heard voices coming from and alley ahead of them.

"Are you sure?" Weiss asked.

"Let's just keep going, we're almost there."

The girls passed the alley, and there were two beggars conversing. Weiss breathed a sigh of relief, and continued walking with Sashimasu. They reached the end of the street and rounded the corner, the airship dock coming into view. Weiss continued walking, but stopped after a few seconds because there was a lack of footsteps next to her. She turned and looked at Sashimasu, who had stopped at the corner.

"Sashi, what's wrong? We're almost there, so let's get going." Weiss said, looking at her. Weiss noticed that Sashimasu appeared to be talking with someone, so she began to walk back towards her. As she grew closer to her, she her Sashimasu speaking to Jace.

"Who are they?" Sashimasu asked.

"I don't know, I just have a bad feeling about them. We need to go." Jace replied.

"What do you mean? I can't just leave Weiss alone. Who knows what they'll do."

"Your right, so take Weiss and leave. Go somewhere else, now."

"But then the night would be ruined. I have to continue."

"If you are going to continue, let me take control. Please. We need to be at our strongest if we are going to get into a fight."

Weiss was confused by this point. She turned back around and looked up the street towards the airship dock. The street was empty, except for two men standing just outside the dock. It was hard to make out what they looked like, but they were wearing all black and seemed to be looking for something. Weiss tuned back into the argument taking place behind her.

"Let me take over just for a second, I need to try and smell them." Jace pleaded.

"If I let you take over, you promise that you'll let me have control again?" Sashimasu asked.

"Yes, yes! Now let me take over!"

"Fine." Sashimasu then changed into Jace. He was wearing a pair of gym shorts and a white t-shirt.

"Weiss, " Jace said as soon as he changed "I need to do something that is probably stupid. Please just stay behind me."

Weiss nodded and walked behind him as he kneeled down. Jace then took a deep breath, and his face began to glow. After a few seconds, he had the head of a Beowulf. He took a few sniffs of the air, then changed his head back to it's regular form. He then fell forward and was breathing heavily. Weiss knelt down beside him after a few seconds.

"Are you OK? How bad did you change?" She asked.

"Change?" He panted "I just smelled them. They smelled like my kind."

"Your kind? Like more people like you?"

"I don't know. All I know is that either they are like me or that there is a Grimm nearby. Both are probably bad." He sat up, and began changing into Sashimasu.

"Why? Are people looking for you?"

"Yeah, probably." Sashimasu answered for Jace as she was standing up. "We did run away from the facility, and I'm supposed to be dead. Someone must have tipped them off."

Weiss thought back to the events of yesterday "Professor Goodwitch put out an APB to everyone in Vale with your description. They must have seen it if they are looking for you here."

"Oh, well that's not good. What do we do? If people are looking for me then I can't go anywhere with you." She fell to her knees and began to cry.

"Don't cry. I'm sure we can figure something out to work around it." Weiss tried to console her.

"C'mon, get up. Let's get going." Weiss held her hand out to help Sashimasu up. Sashimasu looked up at her, and her eyes widened.

"Weiss, look out!" She screamed.

Weiss was confused, but she was instantly aware what was happening when she was grabbed from behind. The impact of the grab winded her, and the attacker wrapped one arm around her torso just under her breasts, and the other was holding an object to her throat. Weiss coughed, and she felt something sharp at her throat and knew that the object was a knife. She looked at Sashimasu, who was pinned face down on the ground. There was a man on her back who was holding a gun to the back of her head. Weiss was struggling to break free, but to no avail.

"Don't struggle, we don't want you. Just stay calm and you can walk away from this free of harm." a gruff voice whispered in her ear. Weiss stopped struggling, and looked at Sashimasu.

Sashimasu was still crying, only silently now. The man on her back was saying something into a radio on his shoulder. After he finished talking to the radio he began to speak to Sashimasu.

"You are supposed to be dead, you little shit. I killed you myself, so I would know. So why is it that I find a BOLO in Vale with your name on it? And why are you laying under me right now?" the man's voice was rough and raspy. Sashimasu remained silent, and she was still crying.

"Where's your little bitch of a boyfriend Jace that you ran away with? He still here? Let's hope so, that way you both can die together." The man laughed loudly.

'Boyfriend? Sashi and Jace were dating?' Weiss thought. She looked back at Sashimasu, who hadn't moved or made a sound yet.

"Get up, and put your hands on your head." The man got off of Sashimasu, but he kept his gun trained on her head. Sashimasu got up slowly, and put her hands on top of her head. The man stood behind her, and after a few seconds approached her. He holstered his gun and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. He reached his left hand towards her left hand.

"Wait." Sashimasu said slowly "You wanted to know where Jace was?"

"Yeah, but you can tell me in cuffs." He grabbed her left hand.

"Well, he's right here." On the word "here" Sashimasu changed into Jace, who grabbed the man's left hand and pulled it to his mouth. He bit down on the man's index finger, and a sickening crunch could be heard as Jace bit his finger off. The man cried out and tried to grab his gun, but Jace elbowed him in his side. The man stumbled and Jace grabbed the man's gun in his left hand. He quickly turned to face Weiss, aimed, and fired one shot.

Time seemed to slow down for Weiss. She heard a rush of air go past her left ear, followed by a sickening popping sound. There was a warm liquid splattered on the side of her face, and the arms around her waist and the knife at her neck fell away. There was a thumping sound behind her, and the clattering of metal on pavement. She was looking Jace in the eyes, and time seemed to return to normal once he smiled at her. He spat the finger out of his mouth, and spoke to her.

"You should go, it's not safe here."

Weiss was frozen in fear. She wasn't looking at Jace anymore, instead she was looking at the person behind him. She pointed a shaky finger at the figure behind him. He was about to turn and face it, but three claws came through his stomach. Jace's mouth fell open, and he dropped the gun in his hand. The claws came out from his stomach, and he fell to his knees. The man circled around from behind Jace, to where he was standing between Jace and Weiss.

The man's left hand looked like a Beowolf hand, minus the index finger. His right hand was unchanged, and so was the majority of his left arm. He stood in front of Jace, and picked up his gun.

"WHICH ARM IS IT?!" He yelled "WHICH ARM CAN CHANGE?"

"Arm?" Jace sputtered, grasping his stomach "I am not like you, you Tertiary bitch."

The man laughed "What are you? A Primary? Yeah right. Now which arm is it so I can take it off?" He raised his gun, leveling it on Jace's head.

Jace coughed, and blood flew from his mouth "Yeah, I am." He said quietly.

"What was that? I didn't hear you."

Jace began to stand up, still grasping his stomach "I said, I am."

"Really? Prove it. It will be more entertaining to kill you that way."

Jace stood up fully, and looked at the man. He spat over his left shoulder, and closed his eyes. His whole body began to glow, and in a few seconds he was almost double the man's height. His arms almost tripled in size, and his legs doubled in size. His whole body was covered in a thick black fur, with patches of spiked bones on his back, shoulders, arms, and legs. His head was almost solid white with red markings on it, and he had solid amber eyes. There were spikes running down his spine.

"Well I'll be damned…" The man breathed, before raising his gun again and firing off the rest of his magazine at Jace. Jace blocked the shots with his forearms, and once the man was done shooting, Jace swiped at him. The man tried to dodge it but Jace hit his left arm, instantly cutting it off below the elbow. The man cried out in pain, grabbing at his stump. He fell to the ground and Jace picked him up in his hands, holding the man's legs in one hand and his torso in the other.

"Die...for...her…" Jace wheezed.

"No please! I'll do anything! Just let me go!" The man pleaded, but it fell on deaf ears. Jace ripped the man in half, sending blood and entrails flying. Jace then took the man's corpse and ate it. After he was finished eating, he changed back into his regular form and collapsed onto his hands and knees. He looked up at Weiss.

Weiss looked at him for a few seconds. His face and chest were covered in blood, and there were pieces of flesh all over his body. She then fainted, and Jace scrambled to catch her She fell to the pavement just as Jace reached her, and he tried to shake her awake. When Weiss didn't awaken, he picked her up and carried her bridal style to the airship dock.

* * *

Weiss awoke in a bed. There was a little light coming in from the window, and the room smelled oddly familiar. She sat up and noticed that she was in her dorm room, and that all her teammates were asleep. She looked at the clock on the bedside table, which read 5:06 A.M.

'How did I get here?' She thought 'I remember going out with Sashi, then some guys came, then Jace…' her thoughts drifted when she thought of Jace, and she almost puked. 'What is he? I gotta find out. I'll start looking for him in his room.'

She slid out of her bed and her bare feet touched the floor. She looked down at herself, and saw that she was completely naked. She quickly ran to the dresser and grabbed some underwear and her usual combat clothes, then she ran to the bathroom and began dressing herself.

'I swear if that boy did this to me.' she thought angrily, looking around the bathroom. On the toilet seat was the underwear she was wearing last night, her dress, and her shoes, all folded up neatly. There was a note on a piece of clean, white paper on the top of the stack of clothes. She finished getting dressed, the got her clothes and the note. As she was putting her clothes up, she read the note.

"I'm sorry about last night. I really hoped that you were gone so you didn't have to see me, well, perform. I'm glad you are physically ok, hopefully you're not too mentally scarred. I had Sashi change and clean you, but I didn't want her snooping through your clothes so I told her to just put you in your bed naked. I would have used the clothes you were wearing to redress you, but they were covered in blood, so I cleaned them for you. I am in a stable condition, so don't worry about me dying. Also don't come visit me anytime soon, I'm not feeling well."

There was no name left on the note, but Weiss knew it was from Jace. She folded the note and put it in her jacket pocket with her scroll, then left her dorm. She walked to the stairs and went down one floor. She counted the rooms, stopping in front of the one that was below hers. She stood in front of the door for a few seconds, then knocked. There was a groan from inside, followed by a voice.

"Fuck off."

"Jace, it's me. Weiss. I want to talk to you."

"I said fuck off."

"Jace. Please. Let me in so we can talk."

There was a moment of silence, then Weiss heard someone walking towards the door. There were a few seconds of silence before the door opened partially. Jace stood in the doorway. He was only wearing a pair of black gym shorts, and Weiss looked him over. His entire body below his head was covered in black markings. His stomach and forearms were wrapped in bandages, with red spots on them. His eyes were downcast, but Weiss was able to see that they were bloodshot.

"Please, ignore the mess." Jace said, backing into the room.

Weiss entered the room, which was almost completely destroyed. There was one bed still intact, the other three were in various states of destruction. The desk and dresser were both smashed into pieces, and there was only one chair left of the three usually in dorm rooms. The bathroom door was ripped off the wall, and was lying in pieces on the bathroom floor. However, nothing in the bathroom had been destroyed. There were scratch marks on almost every wall which seemed to have come from claws as opposed to hands. Papers were scattered across the floor along with various clothes for men and women. Jace grabbed the one remaining chair and set it in front of the bed and sat in it. He motioned to Weiss to sit on the bed, so she made her way over and sat down. After a few seconds of silence, Weiss asked one of the many questions she had.

"How are you?"

"How am I?" Jace asked, his voice was hoarse "I'm terrible Weiss. I can't live with myself."

"Do you want to talk about it? Maybe about last night?"

"Last night? Yeah, OK. Let's talk about last night."

"Do you know who those guys were?"

"I think." He answered slowly "I don't know who the guy holding you was. But the guy that was holding me…" he trailed off, and Weiss could see tears forming in his eyes.

"Did you know him? What was his name?"

"Damien. He...he killed her."

"Killed who?"

"He killed Sashi! Then he sent her to be put in my head!" he yelled through his tears.

"Where? Where did he kill her?"

"At the facility." tears were streaming down his face "Sashi and I met there. Were were in the same program. Then one day he came in and…" he trailed off.

"It's ok. You don't have to finish. I understand."

"But you don't!" He yelled, standing up "We had a plan and everything! Then he came in and fucked it all up! Sashi and I were going to escape together and-and live on together!"

"Jace! Please sit down! You're scaring me!" Weiss pleaded. Jace hadn't noticed, but his hands had turned into claws. He slumped back down into his chair, and his hands returned to normal.

"I'm sorry." he said, his head downcast "I promise it won't happen again."

"It's OK. I know that you are going through a lot. Just try to stay calm, for me."

Jace took a shaky breath, then nodded. Weiss continued her questions.

"Damien mentioned something about Primaries and Tertiaries. What does that mean?"

"Well I would be a Primary. That means that I was one of the first to be tested on, and the most extensive. As you saw from last night, I can fully change into _them_."

"So I'm guessing that Secondaries and Tertiaries can only change certain parts of their bodies?"

"Secondaries can only change their arms or legs, and Tertiaries can only change one of their hands. Tertiaries are the most deployed for combat because they aren't as difficult to create as Secondaries and Primaries. They are also easier to deal with if they go rogue."

"Like you right? You went rogue?"

"No, I escaped. If I went rogue, I wouldn't have made it out of that facility."

"What do you mean?"

"Rogues try to stop all operations on their own by destroying everything in sight."

"So what happens to them? Are they just killed on the spot?"

"No, they are usually tranquilized then put into the Arena."

"The arena?"

"Basically it's them against anyone who wants to try and kill them. If the win, they are set free."

"Did anyone ever win?"

"No."

There was a moment of silence.

"So were you and Sashi really dating?" Weiss asked.

Jace clenched his fists, drew a shaky breath, the answered "Yeah."

"Oh." A pause "So is Sashi OK?"

"She was shaken, seeing him again. He did some terrible things to her before killing her."

Weiss was silent, so Jace continued.

"She says she's glad you're OK. But she also says that she doesn't want to talk to you."

"Why not?" Weiss asked.

"She thinks that you hate her after last night."

"Tell her that it wasn't ruined. I had fun."

Jace smiled "I'll let her know for ya."

Weiss giggled "Thanks."

There was another moment of silence, but it was interrupted by Jace suddenly getting up and sprinting to the bathroom. Weiss stood up and was about to follow him, but stopped when she heard what sounded like vomiting coming from the bathroom.

"Jace? Are you OK in there?" she called out.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just give me a second." he answered. After a few moments, he returned to the main room and sat back down in the chair.

"Was that…" Weiss asked.

"Yeah. I shouldn't have done that. But I was so angry that I couldn't contain myself. I don't think that I could ever forgive myself for that. I doubt that you could forgive me either. I wouldn't blame you if after you get what you want to know you never talk to me again…"

"Stop." Weiss cut him off "While I don't think that what you did was right, I can understand where you were coming from."

"But that's no excuse for eating someone! I shouldn't have eaten him! Anger isn't an excuse for stupidity! Or cannibalism!" he was standing at this point.

Weiss stood up "Sit. Down." she commanded, pushing him into the chair. "You stand up again, I will personally hand you over to them."

Jace looked up at her silently, and she continued.

"What you did was wrong. I won't deny that. But to me it was justified. I won't forget what you did, but I also won't let it get between us. So stop making it such a big deal!"

Weiss was now inches from Jace's face. She could feel his breath on her lips. It felt warm and comforting to her and, surprisingly, smelled like chocolate chip pancakes. She quickly pulled away and sat back down on the bed, blushing. She cleared her throat after a moment.

"Now...umm…as I was saying, stop hurting yourself over it OK?"

Jace smiled and stood up, taking a step towards Weiss.

"What are you doing? You want to go to them?" she threatened.

Jace remained silent and took another step towards Weiss, so he was standing over her. She tried to stand up but he grabbed her arms and pushed her back onto the bed, pinning her arms above her head. Jace was on top of Weiss, and Weiss was struggling to escape his grasp.

"You're really hot when you're angry." he whispered into her ear.

Weiss stopped struggling. He let go of her arms and got off her, then walked to the bathroom and puked again. Weiss was still lying on the bed when he returned. She hadn't said a word or moved since he got off her, but her face was bright red.

"You should get going." he said upon seeing her still in the room "Don't want to miss breakfast. Or worry your teammates too much."

Weiss sat up, her face still red. "Y-Yeah." she took a deep breath, trying to compose herself "Ar-Are you going to join us?"

"Nah, just tell 'em I ate too much or something."

Weiss got up and left the room silently. As soon as she closed the door, she turned around and slid down the door to where she was sitting on the floor.

'What. Just. Happened.' she thought 'Did he just…? Is he…? Am I…?' She felt her heart. It was pounding in her chest. 'I am. He obviously likes me. What should I do? I think I'll…' her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Weiss, what are you doing here?" Ruby asked.

"Oh I uhhh…I was asking Jace if he wanted to join us for breakfast?" Weiss answered nervously.

"That's what we were going to do." Ruby said "What did he say?"

"He said he can't make it." Weiss replied nervously "He said he ate too much last night."

"Oh, OK."

"Why are you sitting on the floor?" Blake asked skeptically.

Weiss quickly got up "I was taking a breather?"

"Your face is really red too." Yang added "Were you doing cardio or something?"

"I was….umm... yes?"

"You were talking with Jace weren't you?" Blake said

Weiss sighed "Yeah."

"What were you talking about?"

"We were talking about…"

Suddenly Jace's door opened. He grabbed Weiss' arm and pulled her into the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Not a word about last night." He said, squeezing her arm.

Weiss nodded. Jace opened the door again and pushed her back out into the hall.

"Morning guys!" Jace said to the group before slamming his door closed again.

"What was that about?" Yang asked.

"I left my...scroll in his room." Weiss lied "He was giving it back to me."

"OK?"

"Let's just go get breakfast." Weiss said, quickly walking towards the stairs.

"What wrong with her this morning?" Yang asked her teammates.

"I don't know." Ruby replied "Something seems off about her."

"Yeah." Blake added "Like she's hiding something."

"Let's ask her over breakfast. I'm starving." Yang said, following Weiss' lead and heading for the stairs.

"Good idea." Ruby agreed, Blake following silently.

* * *

Team RWBY ate breakfast in an awkward air. They occasionally spoke to one another, but it was silent for the most part. Weiss was the first to finish, and as she was about to get up Yang stopped her.

"What's with you this morning?" Yang asked "You're acting all weird. Like you are hiding something. What's up?"

Weiss sat back down in her seat, looking down at the floor. After a moment she spoke.

"It's Jace."

"What about him?" Yang thought for a second "You aren't in love with him, are you?"

Weiss blushed.

"You are. Why are you hiding it? I don't think any of us care, right?" Yang looked at the other girls, who both nodded in agreement. "See? So why didn't you just tell us?"

"I didn't want you guys to think I was weird."

"Weird? Why would we think that?"

"Because of his Semblance."

"His Semblance? Really?" Yang laughed "You don't want us thinking you are a freak in bed." Weiss blushed. "Think of what our Semblances could do to guys. Ruby could tear someone in half, Blake could be a one-girl-threesome, and I could go for hours!"

"Yang!" Blake said, choking on some food "Not at breakfast!"

"Tear someone in half?" Ruby asked "What do you mean by that?"

"In due time Rubes, in due time." Yang said to Ruby. She turned back to Weiss "It's OK to like someone. Don't act all weird 'cause of stuff like that."

Weiss nodded "Thanks Yang, actually speaking sense for once."

"Hey! I can start so many rumors!" Yang retorted.

"As can I."

"You wanna go, Ice Queen?"

Weiss laughed "I'm fine, thanks."

Yang crossed her arms "You know you'd lose."

"Whatever you say."

Blake shook her head "You guys need to go outside, blow off some steam."

"How about I go train and Weiss goes to Jace and fucks herself?" Yang suggested.

"Creative." Weiss retorted "Or we could go into Vale and do something as a team."

"I like the second idea." Ruby said "Vale always has something to do."

"That does sound appealing." Blake agreed.

"You guys headed into Vale?" someone said from behind them. The girls turned around and saw Jaune standing behind them.

"Hi Jaune." Ruby said "Did you and your team want to come with us?"

"Nah, I think Pyrrha wanted to go over some team moves or something. But have you seen the news this morning?"

"No, why?"

"You should check it out before going to Vale, it's pretty gruesome." He patted his pockets "Ahh I forgot my scroll. I'll see you guys later." He then ran off.

"What do you think happened?" Yang asked, pulling out her scroll. After a few moments of silence she spoke again.

"Hey guys you should see this." she said, looking up from her scroll. The rest of her team stood above where she was sitting, looking over her shoulder at the scroll. Yang had a replay of the morning news paused on the screen. She hit play and the video began.

"'Good morning citizens of Vale, my name is Lisa Lavender and I hope you are having a good morning so far. Our top story today is an unfortunate one, a double murder case. We go live to our correspondent at the scene, Jeremy Green. Jeremy?'

'Thanks Lisa. I am here at the corner of 77nd street and Platinum drive in the industrial district. As you can see behind me investigators are currently inspecting two bodies that were found lying there this morning. Investigators say that when they arrived early this morning they were underestimating the reports given to them by dispatchers. They say that one of the bodies was fatally shot once in the head. The other body was almost nonexistent, according to investigators, who say that the only way they were able to determine that two people were murdered is that they found the second victim's hand and his shoes at the are looking for any clues as to who could have done this, and if you have any information please call the Vale Crime Stoppers at 8675309. Back to you Lisa.'

'Thanks Jeremy. We hope that this can be put to rest quickly so that the victims families can be at peace. In other news…'"

Yang paused the video and put her scroll away.

"Who would do such a thing?" Ruby asked.

"I don't know Rubes." Yang replied "A really bad person."

Weiss was in her own world and she felt dizzy and nauseous. She sat down and took a sip of water. Her trance was broken by her scroll buzzing. After a few seconds it buzzed again, and a third time a few seconds after that. She pulled out her scroll, and she had three messages from an unknown number. She opened them and immediately knew who it was.

J: hey snowflake

J:guess what

J:we made the news, and a video shoot

 _J:click me_

W: Jace?

J: what?

W: What is this thing that says 'click me'

J: it's a link. to a video.

W: Video? What's it about?

J: the one in the news. someone sent it in and the news channel put it on their website

W: How'd you get a scroll?

J: y u ask?

W: How'd you get my number even?

J: don't worry about that, just click the link

W: I am having a serious 'privacy' and 'personal space' chat with you later

J: suit yourself m8

Weiss clicked a link, and a video popped up on her screen. The video was paused, and all Weiss could see was black. She hit the play button and the video began. The video was still black, but she could hear air rushing past the camera and what sounded like footsteps. After a few seconds, the footsteps stopped the camera was brought up to a window.

The camera was held shakily up to the window, which was overlooking an intersection with four figures at it. Two of the figures were wearing all black, one figure was wearing a white dress and had long white hair, and the last was wearing a black dress and had a long purple braid. Weiss' stomach dropped. She knew exactly what was going to happen in the video, and who was in it. One figure in all black was holding the girl in the white dress from behind, with something to her neck. The other figure in all black was holding the girl in the black dress on the ground, with a gun pointed at the girl.

The camera was set down, so it was steadied. 'Oh my god.' someone breathed in the video, blowing air into the mic. Weiss saw the girl in black get up and put her hands on her head, then a figure in all black holster his gun and get a pair of handcuffs from his belt. The man reached up to grab the girl's hands, but the girl grabbed his hand and brought it to her mouth. The camera was knocked over, and someone could be heard vomiting in the background. A gunshot could be clearly heard, and then there was silence for a few seconds. 'Which arm is it. Which arm can change.' could be barely heard, followed by silence again. After a moment, someone could be heard screaming, followed by silence yet again. The video then ended.

Weiss didn't move after it ended. After a few seconds someone spoke next to her.

"Dang." Yang said "That was creepy."

"Is that really what happened?" Ruby asked. Blake was silent.

"Did you guys…" Weiss trailed off.

"Well yeah, you had your sound on and we were curious." Yang said.

"Yeah. Did someone send you that video?" Blake asked.

"It's on the news website. I just went there." Weiss answered quickly.

"OK, they updated the case then?" Blake asked.

"I don't know, I just looked at the video."

"I guess I will have to do some research of my own."

"Guess so." Weiss locked her scroll and turned to her teammates "You guys still want to go into Vale?"

"Makes no difference to me." Yang replied.

"Not really." Ruby said "I'll just find something fun to do here."

"Blake?" Weiss asked, turning to where Blake was standing, but she was gone.

"Where'd she go?" Weiss asked.

"Maybe she went off to research the case in the library." Yang replied, shrugging "She has been reading a lot of mystery novels lately, must be going to her head."

"I just hope she's OK."

"I'm sure she is. What's the worst that can happen in a library?"

"I guess you're right." Weiss began walking off "I'm going back to the dorm to take a shower and relax. Feel free to join me if you guys want too." She waved to her teammates and exited the cafeteria.


	5. Chapter 5: Aftertaste

Weiss lay in her bed, looking at the bottom of Ruby's bed above her. She planned on showering and relaxing for the afternoon, but she couldn't stop thinking about the events of the morning and the previous night. She sighed and rolled over onto her side, facing the wall.

"It's all so strange." she said to herself.

A few seconds of silence her scroll buzzed on the bedside table beside her. She rolled onto her back and reached blindly for it. She eventually grabbed it and brought it in front of her. She had a new message from Jace, she set her phone down on her chest and closed her eyes.

"I just want to hide away sometimes." she groaned.

Her phone buzzed on her chest, and she ignored it. After a few seconds it buzzed again, and then a third time a few seconds after that. Weiss finally picked up her scroll and looked at the messages. They were all from Jace.

 _J_ : wat is strange?

 _J_ : u wanna hide together? under my sheets maybe?

 _J_ : y u ignor me?

 _J_ : i cri ery tim u ignor me

Weiss looked around the room. Jace was nowhere in sight, so how was he able to hear her?

 _W_ : Jace, how can you hear me? Are you in my room?

 _J_ : no am below you, n my room

 _W_ : Then how can you hear me?

 _J_ : idklol. the puking stopped and now i can hear evry1s conversations. the people across the hall are going 2 get super wasted 2night.

Weiss sighed and rolled out of her bed. She walked to the door and opened it, her scroll buzzing at the same time.

 _J_ : r u coming 2 visit? I hope so

Weiss put her scroll in her pocket and made her way to the stairs. She went down one floor and arrived at Jace's room again. Before she even knocked the door opened for her, and Jace was standing in the doorway. He looked the same as he did when Weiss talked with him earlier that morning.

"I could smell you. You smell really good." he said, retreating into the room. Weiss followed him in, closing the door behind her. The room was still set up how it was that morning. Weiss sat on the bed again, and Jace was pacing on the other side of the room.

"How did you smell me? Do I really smell that bad?" she asked, sniffing her jacket.

"No, like I said you smell fine. I don't know what's happening. It's like I've got superhuman senses or something."

"Was it because you…" she trailed off.

"I think so. I won't do it often though. I still feel like shit both physically and mentally."

Both of them were silent for a moment, but the silence was broken by Jace laughing.

"What's so funny?" Weiss asked.

"Someone told a really good joke next door, top tier stuff." Jace laughed a little more, then he seemed to remember something. He stopped pacing and stood a few feet in front of Weiss.

"Notice anything different?" he asked, motioning to his body. Weiss looked him over. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at first, but when she looked him over a second time she noticed that his bandages were gone.

"What happened to your wounds?" she inquired.

"They healed around the same time I got my senses boosted." he paused and looked around the room. He then seemed to find what he was looking for, and went to grab it. He picked up a silver rectangle with holes in it and walked back to Weiss.

"What is that?" she asked.

"I found it in the bathroom. I think it was Damien's knife. A balisong or something." Jace flicked his hand, and the box swing open, revealing a blade was inside. "I've never really used one before, but I hear you can do some sick tricks with them."

"Are you going to try some tricks?"

"Umm yeah. Tricks."

"Don't tell me you're going to…" before Weiss could finish, Jace pointed the knife towards himself and held it out at arm's length. He held the knife with both his hands and plunged it into his stomach. He held it there for a few seconds before removing it with his right hand. The blade of the knife was covered in blood, and there was a deep cut in Jace's stomach which started to bleed heavily.

"Jace! What the hell!? Are you stupid!" Weiss screamed, standing up.

"I don't even feel it!" Jace exclaimed, looking down at his stomach which had began to heal. "I don't feel pain and I heal super quick! Awesome!"

"You are the Lord of Stupid." Weiss said, sitting back down "What if the effects wore off? You would probably be dying right now, and I wouldn't be happy." She quickly brought her hands up to cover her mouth.

"Hear that Sashi? She likes us back." Jace said.

"I heard it as well as you did!" Sashi agreed

"That last part slipped out! I didn't mean to say that aloud!" she cried.

"Hey, it's OK. Your secret is safe with me. I promise I won't…"

"You won't what?"

"Shhhh."

"Don't "shhh" me!"

"Really! Shut up! Someone's in your room, no two people are in your room."

"Who?"

"Yang and Blake."

"It's their room too, so what's the big deal?"

"It's what they're saying that's the big deal."

"What are they saying?"

"I'll just repeat it to you." Jace paused for a second.

"I thought Weiss was going to be here Yang said" a pause. "I did too, guess we got the room to ourselves Blake said...Oh whatever shall we do Yang said...I don't know, you tell me Blake said...I think you know what I want kitty cat Yang said."

"What's going on now?" Weiss asked.

"I hear fabric rustling and what sounds like kissing." Jace answered.

"Oh my Dust are they…"

"Yeah, I think so. They have a boy in there too, and they're having a threesome."

Weiss facepalmed "You literally just said there were only two people in the room. So if you use your brain, two people in a room making kissing sounds gives you?"

Jace thought for a moment "You think they're lesbians? We should find out." Jace walked over to the window and opened it up.

"Jace, what are you doing?"

"I'm doing science!"

"I don't think your 'science' is going to go well with a bloody knife in your hand."

Jace looked down at his hands, and dropped the knife onto the floor. "There, problem solved. Now onward, for science!" He began climbing out of the window.

"Jace, don't." Weiss got up and walked to the window "Let's just leave them be and let them have their alone time, OK?"

"But science…"

"Jace." Weiss looked him firmly in the eyes "Come back into this room. Now."

Jace sat down on the windowsill and looked at Weiss, who continued to stare at him firmly.

"But Weiss, I need to do science." Jace pleaded. Weiss shook her head.

'I might have to actually do this.' she thought. "Jace, you know what else is a science?"

"What?"

"Chemistry."

"What do you mean? How does chemistry apply to observing people?"

Weiss shook her head and stepped towards him.

'Am I really doing this?'

She reached and put her left hand behind his head, just above his neck.

'I really am doing this.'

She pulled his head towards hers, closed her eyes, and lightly kissed him. The kiss lasted only for a second before Weiss pulled away. She took a step back from him and licked her lips, which were suddenly dry. They tasted like chocolate and Weiss assumed that it was because of Jace, who had not moved since Weiss stepped back. His mouth hung slightly open, and he seemed to not be breathing.

"Jace, please come back inside." Weiss asked softly. Jace slid off the window and sat down on the floor below the window, bringing his legs to his chest and resting his head on the wall behind him.

"That's enough science for one day." he breathed.

Weiss giggled "I'll leave you to recover, I'm heading back to my room."

"Yeah, yeah." He said flatly, waving goodbye while looking at her blankly. Weiss left the room, gently closing the door behind her. After the door was fully closed, she ran towards the stairs.

She needed somewhere quiet to think, and her room was not the place. She stopped off at a bathroom along the way and splashed her face with water, hoping that it was just a dream and that she would wake up. The water only made her face wet, and her stomach dropped.

'That just happened. In real life. It couldn't have, could it?' she thought as she exited the bathroom. She continued running through the halls in a trance, which was broken when she ran into someone.

"Ouch!" a feminine voice cried. Weiss was knocked to the floor, and looked up to see who she had knocked over. She saw a pair of bunny ears and knew it was Velvet.

"I'm so sorry Velvet!" Weiss apologized, quickly getting up and extending a hand towards the fallen girl "I've had a crazy day and I wasn't paying attention." Velvet took the outstretched hand in hers and pulled herself up.

"It's OK Weiss." she replied "We all have days like those. Do you want to talk about it with someone?"

"I...no. I just...I...Yeah, that would be nice."

"Where were you headed in such a hurry?"

"I don't really know. I just wanted somewhere quiet to think really."

Velvet smiled "You want to go for a walk? They always clear my head."

"Sure, that sounds like a good idea."

"I know a place not far from here that is nice and quiet, follow me."

Velvet began walking with Weiss a few steps behind her. Velvet took her out of the school and towards the forest. After a few moments of walking through a small path, the girls arrived in a clearing. There was a small, square wooden table with two chairs at it that were facing each other. A blue umbrella was set up next to the table, shading it from the sun. Velvet sat at one of the chairs and motioned for Weiss to sit in the other. Weiss sat down and looked around the clearing.

The clearing was a small circle, probably about ten or fifteen feet across. There was a park bench a few feet behind Velvet, but other than the table and the bench the clearing was empty.

"What is this place?" Weiss asked.

"Coco and I made this a few years back." Velvet replied "We'll have team meetings here sometimes, but it's usually the place where Coco and I talk."

"Are you and Coco…?"

Velvet blushed "Not really, we're just close."

"Oh."

There was a few seconds of silence.

"So what's happened today?" Velvet asked.

"A lot." Weiss replied "I think it would be easiest to start from when I woke up this morning."

Weiss explained her morning to Velvet, who seemed to be listening intently. Once Weiss finished her explanation Velvet remained silent for a few seconds.

"So there is a guy named Jace and he is related to that case on the news?" Velvet asked.

"Yeah, that's right." Weiss answered.

"Does he pose a threat to anyone around him?"

"Well no, he was did what he did out of anger."

"I see. You said something about his senses being boosted?"

"Yeah. He got a major boost to his hearing and smell, along with regeneration or something like that. And it was because he...umm...ate someone."

Velvet nodded "You said he was part Grimm, no?"

"Well he is, but Grimm don't usually react like he did to eating someone."

"Could you explain what kind of Grimm he looked like?"

"Well he looked like a Beowolf, but he had lots of spikes all over his body and his face was fully covered in bone or something."

Velvet nodded again "He must be an Alpha Beowolf. It would make sense that he gets traits similar to a Beowolf in his human form after eating. He's feeding his Grimm side. You said he was puking at first right? That's probably the human side of him taking over and removing as much of the 'food' as possible, since people typically don't eat each other. But some of it was already digested, so then his Grimm side takes over and uses the digested 'food' to it's advantage giving him abilities like regeneration and boosting his senses."

Weiss was silent for a second "Wow Velvet. I didn't know you knew so much about Grimm."

Velvet shrugged "Coco like us to know our enemy." she paused "You said that he heard Yang and Blake…?"

"Yeah. You can't tell anyone, I don't think that anyone knows other than Jace, you and I."

"I won't, I promise."

"Thank you."

"You also said that you and Jace did the same thing."

Weiss blushed "I didn't know what came over me. It just felt like it was the only thing that was going to stop him from going out that window!"

Velvet laughed "Calm down! It's really not that big a deal, no need to plead your case. Does he know how you feel?"

Weiss sighed "I haven't told him straight up, but I bet he can guess pretty well…"

"You should tell him. Sometimes boys are dense, and even doing something like that won't get to them."

Weiss giggled "Thanks Velvet. When did you become a relationship guru?"

Velvet shrugged "You learn to read people's emotions when you're like me." she pointed to her ears "Got to know if someone means harm or not."

Weiss nodded silently. 'I know it's hard being a Faunus, but having to read people's feelings to determine if they were going to hurt you or not? Velvet must have it harder than most.' she thought.

"You want to talk about anything else while we're here?" Velvet asked.

"I think I'm good at the moment. Thank you Velvet, I really needed to talk with someone."

Velvet smiled "If you ever need to talk with someone, give me a call and come here. I will come as soon as I can. Now you should go find Jace talk with him."

Weiss nodded and got up. She turned and began making her way back to the school, but stopped at the edge of the clearing. She turned back towards Velvet.  
"Velvet." she called "If you need to talk with someone other than Coco, I wouldn't mind listening."

Velvet smiled and nodded. Weiss turned back around and followed the same path she came in on, filled with determination to find Jace.

Weiss stood outside Jace's room. She hadn't knocked on the door yet as she was expecting Jace to sense her presence outside the door like he did earlier, so why make it hard on herself. After a few seconds she gave the door a gentle knock.

"Jace?" she asked to the door. There was no response so Weiss knocked again, and a little harder.

"Jace? Are you in there?" she asked, and again received no response. She tried the door handle, but the door was locked. She couldn't have been gone that long, could she? Weiss heard movement from inside the room, followed by a groan.

"Jace? Is that you? What's going on?" Weiss tried the door handle again, and it was still locked.

"Weiss…" someone groaned faintly from inside.

"Jace! Is that you? Open the door!" Weiss banged on the door, which didn't move an inch. Then she remembered something.

"Hang in there Jace, I'll be back!" She ran towards the stairs, heading for her room.

She barged into her room, scaring Blake who was sitting on her bed reading.

"What's the rush?" Blake asked.

"It's Jace. I think something's wrong with him. I need to get into his room, but his doors locked." Weiss ran to the window and opened it "So i'm going in a different way."

Blake set her book down. "You want some help getting down?"

"Yes! That would be greatly appreciated!"

Blake grabbed Gambol Shroud and handed the end it's ribbon to Weiss. "Hold on tight."

Weiss nodded and tied the ribbon around her waist. She sat down on the window sill and swung her legs outside. She looked back at Blake.

"You ready?"

"Yeah." Blake was braced against the wall so she wouldn't fall.

"Ok, I'm going." Weiss then slid off the window sill. She held on to the ledge of the window, wanting to use the ribbon as a safety measure not a tool. She kicked her feet slightly, feeling for the window sill below her. She did not feel the ledge so she looked down and saw that it was just out of her reach. Weiss saw that the window was still open from earlier.

"Blake." Weiss called out.

"Yeah!" Blake replied.

"I need to drop just a few inches, get ready!"

"OK I'm ready!'

After Weiss heard Blake's confirmation, she let go of the ledge. Her feet landed on the sill, and she looked into the room and saw Jace lying on the floor. He was curled up in a ball and seemed to be clutching at his stomach with his right hand, and his left hand was outstretched towards the door. She quickly undid the ribbon from her waist and stepped into the room, kneeling down beside Jace.

"Jace, what's wrong?" She asked.

"So...hungry." he groaned.

"Food? You need food?" she asked "Can you walk?"

"Don't...know...so...hungry…"

"Hang in there Jace, help is coming." Weiss got up and ran to the window, leaning out of it and looking up.

"Blake?" She called out the window

"Yeah!" Blake responded, looking down at Weiss.

"He's in bad shape! Get Yang and come down here and give me a hand!"

Blake nodded and went back into the room. Weiss ran to the door and unlocked it before returning to Jace's side.

"Jace, we're going to take you to the infirmary OK?"

"Just...want...food…" he groaned.

"I know, they'll get you some there. Just hang in there."

A few moments passed before Weiss heard a knock on the door.

"It's open!" she called. The door was then opened, and two paramedics entered with a gurney. Blake and Ruby were standing outside, trying to stay out of the way of the paramedics.

"We'll take it from here ma'am." one of the paramedics said to Weiss as she lowered the gurney to the ground. The paramedics then picked Jace up and placed him onto the gurney, raising it up again after he was on it.

"If you would please follow us so we can get a report from you." the other said to Weiss as he put an EKG monitor onto Jace's arm. Weiss nodded and followed them as they left the room.

Weiss overheard the paramedics asking Jace some basic questions on the way to the infirmary, such as his name and age, but she wasn't paying attention to them. Her head swam and she felt dizzy. 'What if he dies?' she thought 'What is they can't do anything and he slowly dies in a hospital bed?' She shook her head violently then hit the heels of her hands on her forehead. 'Stop thinking that. He's going to make it, he's going to be OK.'

"Are you alright?" a female voice said to her. She looked up and saw one of the paramedics was walking beside her. "I saw you hitting yourself and I just wanted to make sure you were OK."

"Oh, I'm-I'm fine. I was just thinking about the bad things that could happen, when I shouldn't have."

The paramedic laughed a little "Hey, it's alright. I'm sure he means a lot to you, so it's understandable why you'd be so concerned. I assure you, he's in good hands. Just from the looks of him and his vitals I can assure you he won't die, he's just really hungry that's all." Weiss silently nodded. "We're almost to the infirmary. I'm going to ask you to wait in the lobby until my partner or I come and get you, alright?" Weiss nodded again.

The group reached the infirmary, and Weiss sat down in the lobby as instructed. Only a few moments passed before the female paramedic that had talked with her earlier approach her. Weiss stood up and took a step towards the paramedic.

"How is he?" Weiss asked.

"He's fine." The paramedic answered "You can see him if you want."

"Yes, please."

"Alright, follow me." the paramedic turned around and began walking down a hall, Weiss in tow. She stopped outside a room with an open door, and motioned for Weiss to enter. Weiss stepped inside and saw Jace laying on a bed and he appeared to be asleep. There were two tubes leading into his left arm, which were connected to two clear bags hanging next to his bed. Weiss stood just inside the doorway, the paramedic just behind her.

"He appeared to have been starving when he got here." The paramedic said "Right now we have two bags of basically nutrient water running into him. So he should be back up and running in no time."

"That's good." Weiss sighed.

"It really is. Now could you would please follow me so I can create a report off of what you're seen?"

"Alright." Weiss followed the paramedic through a couple halls until they reached an office. A nameplate on the door said "Robin Evergreen" and as Weiss entered the room a nameplate on her desk read the same name. The room was well kept, with labels on the cabinets detailing where everything was kept. There was a large desk with a computer on it along with other office supplies. A few pictures of the woman's family were on her desk and walls, along with a few small pieces of art. The woman motioned for Weiss to sit in a chair that was in front of the desk, and Weiss sat down. The woman sat in her own chair behind the desk and clicked a few times before turning back to Weiss.

"My name is Robin Evergreen, and I will be gathering your report today. So let's start with when you first came across him. About when was that?"

"What time is it now?"

"12:32 P.M."

"Then probably around noon." The woman typed a few things into her computer.

"OK, and when you got there what condition was he in?"

"Probably about the same as when you guys arrived. He only talked to me a little."

"Alright. Can you remember what he said?"

"He just kept saying he was hungry, that's all." she typed a few more things into the computer.

"Good. So when we got there he was in the same position as when you got there correct?"

"Yes." more typing.

"And how did you come across him? Are you his roommate?"

"Well no, not really. I came up to...get him for lunch and he didn't reply after a few knocks, which he usually does. I called his name and I heard some groaning coming from the inside, so I tried the door and it was unlocked. I saw him on the floor so I called my friend to go and get some help, that's when you guys arrived."

"I see." she began to type a few things into the computer, but suddenly stopped. She clicked a few times on something then turned to Weiss.

"OK, now one more thing before I let you go. We just did a blood test on him to make sure he wasn't sick with anything and we came across something. His blood had an unusual property to it, in that there is two completely opposite blood types in it. We found type O- and type B+ inside him, completely unaffected by each other. Do you know anything about this?"

Weiss shook her head "No, I don't."

"Alright, just have to check." she stood up "Thank you for your cooperation and I hope that we don't meet soon, 'cause that means you're hurt. And I don't want anyone getting hurt here."

Weiss laughed a little "I hope so too." She stood up as well and exited the office. Weiss retraced her steps to get back to Jace's room. The door was still open, so she entered. Jace still appeared to be asleep, so Weiss quietly sat down in a chair next to the bed.

"You really are a handful." she whispered to herself.

"Yeah, but I'm trying to get a handful of you." Jace said, suddenly turning towards her.

"J-Jace!" Weiss stood up and took a step back from the bed.

"I just _really_ need it Weiss. Please help me." Jace rolled out of the bed, falling to the floor. The tubes that were in his left arm came out along with the heart rate sensor that was on his right index finger. He began crawling along the floor towards Weiss.

"What's gotten into you?" Weiss took a few more steps backwards, and her back hit the wall. She was on the opposite side of the room from the door, with Jace was between her and the exit.

"Please Weiss. I really need it." Jace continued to crawl towards her. Suddenly he stopped crawling and his body began to twitch violently. Weiss stood in horror, unsure whether to call for a doctor or try to do something herself. After a few seconds of twitching Weiss began to see that parts of Jace's body began to change slightly. He had streaks of purple in his hair and his arms and legs seemed to shrink slightly. The twitching stopped, and he stood up.

"Jace?" Weiss asked.

"I-I'm sorry you had to see him like that…" a female voice said timidly.

"Sashi?"

"Y-Yeah. It's me. I-I didn't want him to hurt you so I kinda took over his brain. I can't change my appearance all the way since I had to lock him away. I hope I don't look too terrifying…"

"You look like Jace with purple highlights."

"Oh. T-that's not too bad I guess." she laughed nervously.

Weiss took a step towards her. "What was going on with Jace?"

"He...umm...he wanted to…" she made her left hand into a circle and she extended her right index finger. Sashimasu looked away from Weiss and began to blush. She then slowly inserted and removed her right index finger into the circle she made with her left hand. Weiss was confused at first, but then began to blush as well once she knew what Sashimasu's gesture ment.

"O-oh. S-so are you going to do the same?" Weiss asked.

"Well I feel the same as he does. I-I can just control it better. He's an animal when it comes to that. But I...um...I wouldn't mind if you wanted too…" she made the gesture again.

"I think I'll pass."

"That's what I thought. Can I ask you something?"

"I guess."

"Do you hate me because I screwed our date up?"

"No. You didn't mess anything up. The only person who I would blame for messing it up would be Jace, but we already talked about it."

Sashimasu smiled "That makes me feel a little better."

"So how long will you be like this?"

"I don't know. We've never eaten someone before. This is new to both of us. I just hope it isn't very long because it's difficult both physically and mentally to keep him suppressed."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well he's trying to take his body back now, and you don't even want to know what he's thinking."

"Well if it's anything like the other phases then it should only be a few hours."

"I hope you're right."

There was a few moments of silence. Sashimasu sat down on the bed and Weiss walked towards the door. She stood in the doorframe and turned to Sashimasu, who was now facing away from Weiss.

"I'll see what I can do to get you out of here. Come find me once you're out, we should get some food or something tonight."

Sashimasu silently nodded, and Weiss left the room.

Weiss was walking around Beacon aimlessly. After she talked with the infirmary staff about getting Sashimasu out she didn't know where to go. She thought about going back to her room and waiting, but she quickly changed her destination when her stomach growled loudly. She checked her scroll on the way to the cafeteria, and it read 1:28 P.M.

'Is it that late already? I'm surprised I didn't feel hungry earlier, I haven't had a bite to eat today."

She rounded a corner and stopped. Down the hallway she saw Blake and Yang in a deep lip lock. Yang was pushing Blake against the wall with her left hand and cupping Blake's face with the other. Blake had her arms on Yang's hips, and they both had their eyes closed. Their lip lock broke and they looked each other in the eyes. A thin line of saliva connected to both of their lips. Yang's mouth moved as if she was saying something to Blake, and then Blake said something back. Blake then turned to wipe the saliva from her lips and froze, and after a few seconds Yang followed her gaze.

They both were looking at Weiss, who was still standing at the end of the hallway. Weiss didn't know what to do, so she just ran. She heard someone call her name, but she didn't stop. She ran for a while before stopping somewhere in Beacon. Weiss didn't know where she was, but she didn't care. She looked around where she was standing and saw a bathroom, which she entered and went into the stall in the corner of the bathroom. She sat on the toilet and pulled her legs to her chest, sitting in silence. She needed to be alone. Weiss knew that Blake and Yang might have had something between them, but actually seeing it? That was a different story.

After a few minutes of silence her scroll buzzed. She checked it and saw she had been put into a group chat with her team.

Y: Where r u Weiss? We need to have a group meeting

B: Yeah, please come back to our room.

R: Whats the meeting about? I don't remember calling one

Y: I called it Rubes. It's about some things going on in the team

R: like what?

Y: it's just things going on in the group.

R: why are we in a group chat if we are almost all in the same room?

Y: so Weiss can know that we need her here. Now.

Weiss quickly typed up a message, and her finger hovered over the send button. The message read: "I know what I saw. Tell your sister already Yang." She thought about sending it for a moment before rewriting most of the message. She then sent it without a second thought.

W: I KNOW WHAT I SAW

R: did you leave caps lock on lol

W: No. Ruby, ask your sister why she was making out with Blake in the hallway.

Weiss sat in silence again, and she didn't receive any messages for a while. Her scroll buzzed twice after a while, notifying her that she had received two messages. She didn't want to check them, but she checked them anyways. To her surprise she the messages were from Jace, not any of her teammates.

J: I'm out, outside your room

J: Not outside your room anymore. Where you at?

W: IDK, I saw something and I ran. I'm in a bathroom right now, but I don't know where.

J: OMW

W: It's fine, I can find my way back. Don't worry yourself.

J: 2 late

Weiss stayed in the bathroom, and after a couple moments she heard the door open.

"Weiss?" she heard Yang ask "You in here?"

Weiss didn't respond, and she heard the door begin to close. Her scroll buzzed and the door was opened again. Weiss quickly looked at her scroll.

J: Just passed Yang, she looks pissed

Weiss heard footsteps walking through the bathroom, and stall doors being forcefully pushed open. The stall door next to her's was opened, and Weiss had to cover her mouth to keep from screaming. She thought Jace was joking at first, but now she knew he wasn't lying. Weiss saw a pair of brown boots in front of her her stall, and then there was a bang on the door.

"You in there Weiss? I just want to talk, c'mon out."

Weiss was silent, and there was another more forceful bang on the door.

"C'mon Weiss, I know you're in there. I won't hurt you, I promise."

Weiss heard a second set of footsteps enter the bathroom.

"Who the hell are you? And why are you in the girls bathroom?" Yang asked.

Whoever entered the bathroom was silent

"Silent treatment eh? Well just find your way out, no need to worry. Just want to talk to a friend."

No response.

"What are you waiting for? An invitation?"

Silence.

"If you don't go I'll make you go." Weiss heard Yang ready Ember Celica.

There was a loud bang, and the wall next to Weiss was blown out. Dust flew everywhere, and Weiss had to cover her eyes so she wasn't blinded by it. She heard concrete and bricks crumbling, but everything else was silent. She opened her eyes and looked out of the hole in the wall.

There was a figure standing on the grass outside. He was facing away from Weiss and was standing over Yang, who was laying on the ground. He turned towards Weiss. He was wearing a black trench coat, with black suit pants and a white button up shirt. He had a black fedora on his head, with a playing card in it. There was a revolver strapped to his right leg. His hat created a shadow over his face so Weiss could not see it. Weiss stared at him, unsure if she should be afraid of the man.

The man reached up and pulled the playing card from his hat, dropping it to the ground next to Yang. He then tipped his fedora to Weiss and disappeared. Literally. Weiss saw him there one moment, and the next he was gone.

"Weiss are you…" she heard Sashimasu shout from the door. "Holy shit what happened?"

Weiss opened the stall door and stepped out. She saw Jace standing by the entrance, completely frozen.

"I-I don't know Sashi. Yang was here, then some guy appeared, and then this happened…"

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. We need to make sure Yang's OK though." Weiss turned around and ran to where Yang was lying. Weiss heard her breathing, so she knew Yang wasn't dead. She gave Yang a gentle shake, and Yang opened her eyes.

"What happened?" she asked, sitting up.

"I don't know Yang, you were looking for me one second then the next someone does this."

Yang rubbed her head "I wasn't going to hurt you, really. I just wanted to scare you for breaking the news to my sister so bluntly…"

"I really thought you were going to hurt me for a second, and I guess that guy did too."

"I guess so."

"Sorry to interrupt," Sashimasu interjected "But what's this supposed to mean?" she held up the card the man dropped.

The back of the card was red and white checkered, like most playing cards. The front hand an image on it. The image was black and white, and seemed to have no defined shape at first. Sashimasu rotated the card around slowly, and stopped when the image could be made out. It was a picture of a man in a trench coat smoking a cigar.

"What's it mean?" Sashimasu asked.

"Maybe it's his mark." Weiss answered.

"I don't care what it is, we need to go and tell someone what happened." Yang said bluntly.

"Good idea." Weiss agreed "Let's go."

The girls got up and went to find Ozpin.


	6. Chapter 6: Relationships

Weiss was sitting in a windowless room, alone. There were two metal chairs and a metal table in the center of the room, with one light hanging down above the table that illuminated the room. She sat across from the door, which had no windows on it. Ozpin brought her here shortly after Yang, Sashimasu and herself had the encounter with a strange man who attacked Yang. She hadn't been in the room long, but it felt like an eternity due to the dullness of the room. Weiss stood up and was about to check and see if anyone knew she was there but the door opened, and she quickly sat back down.

Ozpin walked into the room slowly. He was holding a coffee cup in his right hand, and in his left he held a tablet. He sat down in the chair across from Weiss silently, setting both his cup and tablet down on the table.

"Ms. Schnee," Ozpin began "You have had an eventful day today. How are you?"

"I...um...I'm good."

"A bit hungry?"

"Y-Yeah, how'd you know?" her stomach growled.

"I didn't see you at breakfast or lunch. I'll make this quick so you can get something to eat." he paused for a moment to take a sip of his coffee. "Let's start with what he looked like."

"I dunno, average height, average build, he wore a black trench coat and a black fedora. He had a gun, I think it was a revolver? Oh! And the playing card! He left a playing card."

"Is there anything else you can tell me about him?"

"I-I don't think so. He might have tipped his hat to someone, either me or Jace. We were both in the same direction. Does that help any?"

"Does this sound familiar?" Ozpin touched a button on his tablet, and a sound began to play. It was a short piano melody, with only four notes in it.

"It doesn't sound familiar, should it?."

"Jace, or shall I say Sashi, said she heard this as the man disappeared. I want you to listen to it again, and I need to know if it sounds familiar to you." he played it again.

Weiss watched the screen intently, hoping to catch the notes that were being played. To her relief, the sound generator app clearly displayed the notes at the top of the screen.

D, D#, G, F#

Weiss tried to remember these notes so she could play them later, if needed. Weiss shook her head.

"It doesn't sound familiar. Maybe from a movie or something, but I haven't seen any recently."

Ozpin stood up. "Alright, thank you for your time. There are a few more questions I should ask but I won't hold you any longer. I think your stomach would kill me if I did."

"O-Ok?"

Ozpin walked out of the room leaving Weiss sitting in silence and slight confusion. After a few moments she too stood up and exited the room. She looked around, and remembered that she was by the library. She was greeted outside by Yang and Sashimasu, who now looked like her purple-haired self again instead of being mixed with Jace. Yang was looking at the floor, and Sashimasu stood behind her with a slightly angry look on her face.

"Hey, Weiss." Yang greeted nervously, still looking at the floor "I want to say I'm sorry for, ya know, acting like I did."

"And?" Sashimasu said angrily.

"And that I'm sorry for scaring you."

"AND?"

"And that I promise to never act like that again."

"I think my work here is done." Sashimasu walked off past Weiss. "Oh and Weiss, if you wanna go grab a bite to eat, I'm free the rest of the day. Just text me."

"Alright." Weiss responded, turning to Yang "So what did she say that destroyed your ego enough to make you apologize?"

Yang looked up and laughed slightly "She said a few harsh words, then threatened to actually kill me a few times, followed by a demonstration of her powers."

"Really?"

"Nah, she just talked some sense into me. Mostly about how teammates shouldn't act like that towards each other, and I can agree with her on that. I was just angry that you had to break the news to my sister like that. That was... _Weiss_ cold." Yang burst out laughing.

Weiss sighed and rolled her eyes "Let's just go get some food already, I haven't eaten all day and I want to eat while there's nothing crazy going on." She walked off, heading for the cafeteria.

* * *

The afternoon passed by uneventfully for Weiss and the rest of team RWBY. Weiss had an aching feeling throughout the afternoon however. She felt as if she was forgetting something, but she tried to blow it off as the excitement from the afternoon getting to her head. At dinner she saw a familiar face approach her, Velvet. To Weiss' surprise, Velvet sat down beside her.

"Hey Velvet, what brings you here?" Weiss asked, slightly confused.

Velvet giggled "Well besides the food, I came to see how your talk with Jace went."  
Weiss' stomach dropped. That's what she was forgetting, to talk with Jace! Weiss stood up quickly.

"Where are you going? Did it really turn out that bad?" Velvet asked.

"No, I just remembered I had to talk with him. I'll let you know how it goes as soon as I can, bye Velvet!" She ran out of the cafeteria.

Weiss arrived in front of Jace's room a few moments later. She stood outside his door for a few seconds, regaining her breath. After a moment she stood up straight and brushed the wrinkles out of her skirt. She then carefully knocked on the door.

There was a couple seconds of silence before the door was opened. Sashimasu stood in the doorway, wearing only a sports bra and gym shorts.

"Oh, hey Weiss." She greeted "What brings you here?"

"I wanted to talk to Jace. Is he available?"

Sashimasu thought for a moment. "I suppose. Come on in, make yourself comfortable. I don't think he would like wearing a sports bra, so I gotta go change before you can talk to him." She retreated into the room, grabbing a few articles of clothing from the dresser before entering the bathroom.

The room had been cleaned up so that there was only one bed, a dresser, a nightstand, and a few chairs left. All the broken furniture that had been in the room earlier had disappeared. The main room light was currently off, but a lamp sitting on the nightstand illuminated the room faintly. A chair was pulled up to the nightstand, and Weiss noticed that there was various sewing materials and fabric pieces strewn around the makeshift sewing table. A piece of black and white fabric sat on the table under the lamp. Out of curiosity, Weiss approached the table and looked down at the cloth.

The fabric was rectangular, probably 5 inches wide and 16 inches long Weiss guessed. The primary color of the fabric was black, and it had a white image sewn into it that sat in the middle of the cloth.

The image consisted of several triangles put together. There was a central, equilateral triangle pointing upwards, bordered by three more equilateral triangles all pointing downwards. Scalene triangles were on each exposed side of the three equilateral triangles that bordered the central triangle. Weiss touched the fabric. The black fabric felt silky, and when she traced the white lines on the image with her finger she felt a strange pulling feeling. She pulled her finger away after a few seconds, and she heard a laugh from behind her. She quickly turned and saw Jace standing behind her, wearing a white tank top and black sport shorts.

"What's so funny?" She asked.

"It's just funny that you were curious. It's called an icosahedron. Shame you touched it though, I wasn't finished with it yet." he replied.

"I-I'm sorry. Did I ruin it?"

"Nah, it'll be OK. But what'd you need?"

"I wanted to talk to you. Seriously."

Jace slumped down in the chair by the nightstand, motioning to Weiss to sit on the bed. "Alright, I can be serious. Let's talk."

Weiss sat on the bed. She took a deep breath and began "The first day I met you I was skeptical. I saw you as a threat, not a friend. It's only been a few weeks and that view has changed completely. I now see you as my friend and someone I can trust. I feel like I trust you just as much as my teammates and I've only known you for a fraction of the time, as weird as that may sound." she sighed "Basically what I'm trying to say is that I like you."

Jace sat in silence. He hadn't moved since Weiss began talking, and didn't move for a while after Weiss finished talking. Eventually he stood up, walked to the window, and looked out of it. Weiss remained seated on the bed, in a mix of fear and anger. Why hadn't he said anything to her?

"Jace…?" she asked.

He turned and looked at her "You wanna go out with me?"

"I..uh..well.."

"It's a yes or no Weiss. Unless you're too flustered to answer." He laughed a little.

"Yes!" Weiss answered quickly, turning away from him to try to hide her reddening face.

"Oh, really? That's awesome!" Jace exclaimed, practically jumping into the air "I thought for sure you were going to say no."

"O-Oh. Really?"

He laughed "Yeah, really. As stupid as that sounds."

"Well I guess you're wrong." Weiss turned back towards him. "So you have anything planned tonight?"

"Wow, already planning a date are we? I literally just asked you out."

"Well I wouldn't say a date, more like a time for us to get to know each other."

Jace laughed slightly "Yeah, I'm free. Just giving you a hard time."

"Twenty minutes, your room?"

"Wow. Now you're using my room without my permission?"

Weiss shook her head "See you then." She then got up and left the room silently.

Weiss returned to the cafeteria and found Velvet sitting where she had been when she left. She approached Velvet and sat down next to her.

"So how'd it go?" Velvet asked again.

"I'd say pretty good. I mean he did ask me out." Weiss replied.

Really? What'd you say?"

"Yes."

"That's great news! I'm so happy for you!"

"I don't think I could have done it without you, Velvet. Thank you."

Velvet blushed slightly "It was nothing really, don't mention it." She stood up "I gotta get going, Coco is probably looking for me. Bye." Velvet left the cafeteria. Weiss stood up and left a few seconds after Velvet did to return to Jace's room.

Weiss knocked on Jace's door lightly, but to her surprise the door swung open slightly when she knocked. Slightly confused, she pushed the door open all the way. She saw Jace sitting in the chair that he was sitting in earlier. There were no lights on in the room, and the only light was coming from the evening light streaming in through the now open window.

"Jace?" Weiss asked "Why did you leave the door open?"

"Well I knew you were coming back so I left it open for you. Figured that no one else would try to do something crazy in the ten minutes you were gone. I was right. Make yourself at home." he motioned around the room. Weiss sat down on the bed across from Jace, who was now leaning back in his chair.

"So...tell me about yourself." Weiss said.

"I'm 18 years old, 6 foot 2, weigh 175, got type O- blood. What else…"

"Wait, you have O- blood? Who has B+?"

"Sashi. And how'd you know? Lucky guess?"

"Not really. When you were in the hospital earlier today one of the doctors that was taking care of you asked me about it. Just curious, but please continue."

"Alright. Oh and Sashi is probably going to tell you about herself after I'm done, so it might take a while with her. You have been warned."

Weiss giggled "Alright, I've got some time."

"Let's see, interesting things about myself...Oh! I was sold off to a group of scientists as a child."

"I think you already told me this."

"So I did...I can sew. Kinda."

"Really? Did you make that?" Weiss motioned to the cloth on the table next to him.

"Nah, Sashi did that. I know what I do from watching her. She's really good."

"Oh. Can you do something like that?"

"Of sorts. I'm pretty good with my hands, I can make things."

"Really? Can you show me something?"

"Well there's a couple things I'm working on, I guess you can see some." He got up and walked to the bathroom.

"You keep it in the bathroom?" Weiss asked, confused.  
"I guess you could say that, I converted it into my workshop so I don't have to leave my room to make things."

"Is the bathroom still useable at least?"

"Yeah, mostly."

"Mostly? What do you mean by that?"

"Come and see for yourself."

Weiss got up and walked to the bathroom. The usual bathrooms in dorm rooms are about 40 square feet, with a shower/tub combo at the back furthest from the door, a toilet on the right hand wall next to the tub, and a sink next to that. A cabinet was in the wall opposite the sink. Jace's bathroom, however, was littered with tools and miscellaneous scraps of metal and plastic. The bathtub was filled cords and wires of all colors and sizes. A makeshift table wrapped around the sink, and various rags covered with unknown fluids sat on the edge of the sink. Jace was looking through the cabinet for something unknown to Weiss.

"Where did you get all this." She asked.

"The store? Why?"

Weiss picked up a hand drill that was sitting on the floor next to her "These all look really expensive. You have the money for all these tools and parts?"

"Yes…?" Jace said nervously.

"Jace. Did you steal them?" Weiss asked sternly.

"No. I just know a guy, who knows a guy…"

"I'm just going to tell myself you purchased these legitimately."

"That's probably for the best. Anyways, here's something." He turned to Weiss holding a small silver box, with a smaller black button on the top. He extended his hands towards hers, and Weiss took the box into her hands.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Press the button, you'll see."

Weiss pressed the button, and nothing happened.

"Is it supposed to not work?" She asked.

"Just give it a second. It needs to warm up."

Weiss waited a few seconds. She felt the box begin to feel warm in her hand, and she gave Jace a concerned look.

"It won't burn you, I hope." he tried to assure her.

"You hope? What if it does?"

"It's highly unlikely that it will, unless it breaks."

"You have such a high confidence in your creations, I can tell." Weiss said sarcastically. Jace was about to retort, but the front of the box popped open. Weiss looked down at it, and saw a small blue circle appear inside the box. It was on the edge of the box, and Weiss could see wires and circuitry behind it. Nothing happened for a few seconds, but then the circle began flashing in a steady rhythm. After another few seconds the light stopped flashing and a symbol of a speaker appeared on the circle. Nothing happened after the image appeared.

"Is that it?" Weiss asked. "And what is it?"

"No it's not, and it's a recording device. Well a glorified one."

"Can't you just use your scroll?"

"Well you could, but what if you need a quick distraction in a battle? Or you don't want to send a message the obvious way?"

"Well it wouldn't make much sense to use it in battle for a 'quick distraction'. It takes a year to start up."

"It's only a prototype, alright? You press the speaker button and it will play a recorded sound, and hold the same button to record something."

"So is something recorded right now?"

"I dunno, press the button."

Weiss pressed the speaker button inside the cube. There were a few seconds of silence, then audio began to play from the cube.

" _It's not that simple Sashi. I can't just make things happen."_

" _Of course you can't, you have the charisma of a rock that's been pissed on by a Ursa."_

" _Helpful as always Sashi."_

" _It's the truth. You're super rough with her. You need to listen to me more when we are around her so she doesn't get scared away."_

" _I just want to…"_

The audio playback ended, cutting off the last words of the sentence. Wess looked up at Jace. He was standing still, looking blankly at the wall. Weiss set the box down on the sink and stepped in front of Jace, putting herself between him and the door.

"You want to what?" she asked sternly, crossing her arms.

Jace looked down at her nervously "I-I...umm...I don't want to…"

"Answer the question Jace. It's not that hard. You've already said it once." She took a step towards him, and he stepped back.

"It a...well you see that was taken out of context…"

"Then enlighten me. What were you talking about with Sashi?"  
"We were talking about…" Jace stopped talking. He closed his eyes and raised his right fist up into the air.

"Just tell her already!" Sashimasu said through Jace "Or I'll keep doing this." Jace brought his fist down and punched himself in the groin. He let out a gasp of air, and Weiss heard him try to muffle a cry.

"Tell her!" Sashimasu yelled.

"Alright! Calm down!" Jace pleaded. He lowered his fist to his side, and then he quickly moved his hands to his groin. After a few seconds of wallowing in his own self-pity, Jace stood up straight.

"We were talking about you Weiss." he said calmly.

"I know that, but what about me."

"Well I think the recording makes it obvious…"

"Not really. What were you planning on doing?"

"I was going to tell you how I felt. But you came to me first."

"O-Oh."

"Yeah. And that last phrase that was cut off…"  
"What were you going to say?"

"I was going to say I didn't want to lose you like I did Sashi…"

Weiss hadn't noticed how close Jace had gotten to her. He was standing a few inches from her, when just a few moments ago he was a few steps away from her. He carefully pulled her into a light embrace.

"I won't let that happen to you. I promise." he whispered. He tightened the embrace, and Weiss returned it.

"You're a dolt." she whispered into his ear "But I guess that makes you my dolt, right?"

Jace let out a light laugh "Yeah, I guess so." He released the embrace. "So I think Sashi wanted to talk to you. Maybe back out in the room where it's more comfortable?"

"That sounds reasonable." Weiss followed Jace out of the bathroom and sat down on the bed where she was before. Jace remained standing behind his chair before changing into Sashimasu. She sat down after changing fully.

"So Weiss, we're dating now right?"

"Wait what?"

"Well Jace asked you out, so by default you are going out with me too. Unless you want me to ask you out too?"

Weiss thought for a moment "I guess that makes sense."

"Perfect!" Sashimasu said cheerfully "But I guess you want to know about me now, no?"

"Sure. Unless you want to hear about me first?"

"I'll go first. I'm five feet and eleven inches tall, I'm 18 and I have type B+ blood. I like rainy days and long walks in the desert. If I could describe myself with a flower I would say I'm an alpenrose, because I'm purple and will kill you if you try to eat me when I don't want you to. But enough about me, let's hear about you."

Weiss sat in silence for a few seconds, processing the information that she just received in slight confusion.

"Very...enlightening Sashi. Anyways, I don't know where to start about me…"

"Well I already know that you are five feet and three and a quarter inches tall, your semblance is glyphs, you are the heiress to the Schnee dust company, you are left handed, and that you are eightteen. Let's start somewhere after that?"

"How did…"

"Oh and I also know that you are a B cup. 38B to be exact."

Weiss sat motionless, her face growing slightly red. "What else do you know?" She asked nervously.

"About you or your team?"

Sashimasu's answer shocked Weiss. "Let's start with me."

"You have a sister named Winter, a father who is the current CEO of the SDC, a mother who is at home all day taking care of the house, a grandfather who is the owner of the SDC, and an uncle who enjoys visiting night clubs. Particularly the Furry Friends Bar in downtown Atlas, surprisingly. I think that's all I know about you."

"And my team?"

"Your team leader is Ruby. Yang's her sister. They have a father, Taiyang, and no mother because one passed and the other is missing. Ruby visits her mom's grave once a month, and Yang is always looking for hers. Blake is a cat faunus, that much is obvious. She was once in the White Fang, and she enjoys reading. Yang is extremely attached to her hair, and blows up when it gets damaged. Ruby is a 32A, Blake is a 36C and Yang is a 38DD."

"How…"

"I have my ways." She smiled mischievously.

"Should I even ask?"

"It's best if you don't."

Weiss sighed "Just please don't try to find anything else. I think you already know way too much personal information about me and my teammates."

"Alright, I'm sorry." Sashimasu leaned forward towards Weiss "Please hit me and call me a bad girl."

Weiss scrambled back on the bed until she was against the wall "Sashi, what the hell?"

Sashimasu got up and crawled onto the bed in front of Weiss "Please Weiss, I deserve it. I've been a bad girl." She closed her eyes as if expecting a blow to her face.

"Sashi, calm down." Jace said through Sashimasu "You're taking it way too far on the first day."  
Sashimasu crawled backwards off the bed and sat on the floor. "You owe me later." she grumbled.

"Fine, just stop being weird for now. Again, it's only day one." Jace replied.

Weiss slowly made her way back to the edge of the bed. She looked down at Sashimasu sitting on the floor.

"Are you going to be ok?" she asked.

"I'd be better if you just hit me like I wanted." Sashimasu pouted.

"You really want me to hit you?"

Sashimasu jumped up excitedly "Please do, I've been a bad girl and I deserve it!"

"Sashi…" Jace growled.

"It's OK Jace, I guess if she wants it so bad I guess I could indulge her. She is my girlfriend after all."

"Weiss...you don't want to do it. I promise."

"Jace, what's the worst that could happen? It won't even be very hard."

Before Jace could respond, Weiss moved her arm and lightly slapped Sashimasu's cheek. Weiss immediately regretted her action, because as soon as her hand touched Sashimasu's cheek she let out a low moan. Weiss blushed and quickly retracted her hand.

"Oh yeah~" Sashimasu moaned "Do it again, but harder~"

"N-No way!" Weiss replied.

"C'mon, you can't put a girl in the mood and then leave her. That's like pulling the pin on a grenade and holding it. Please just keep hitting me, and call me names~"

"I am not going t-to do you on the first date!"

"Told you not to hit her." Jace said "You might want to leave unless you want to stick around to pleasure her. Or to watch her pleasure herself."

Weiss blushed even deeper "I think I'll just go."

"That's probably best." Jace said "Catch you tomorrow at breakfast?"

"Aww." Sashimasu pouted "I'm dripping and you're going to leave?"

"Yeah. Night Jace."

"Night Weiss."

Weiss quickly exited his room and returned to her dorm. The rest of her team was already in the room, all in various stages of getting ready for bed. Ruby was taking a shower, Blake was laying in her bed reading and Yang was changing into her pajamas in the middle of the room. It was already dark outside, which surprised Weiss.

"Do you have to change right there?" Weiss asked.

"Well Rubes is using the bathroom and I don't think Blake minds, right?" Yang replied

"Hmm?" Blake looked up from her book "Oh. Yeah, yeah." She returned to her story.

"I'd think that by now you wouldn't mind. Guess not." Yang said, pulling her tanktop on.

"Well I don't really, it's just that…"

"Just what?"

"I think Sashi has been going through our stuff at night or something, because I was just talking with her and she knows a lot about us."

"Like what? Our names and what we look like?"

"Well kinda, but also different things. That's what makes me uncomfortable with you changing in the middle of the room."

"Really? What's she know?"

"Well she knows all of our bra sizes, and now so do I…"

"Really? She wasn't bluffing or something?"

"I don't think so. She says you're a 38DD."

Yang looked down at her breasts "Yeah, I guess she has been going through or stuff. Kinda creepy." She hopped up onto her bed "Did you ask her to stop or something?"

"Yeah, I think she will. Hopefully." Weiss began changing into her pajamas. Once she was changed she sat down on her bed.

"So are you and Jace a thing?" Yang asked.

"Oh, um...yeah we are."

"I knew it! Hear that Kitty Cat? You owe me a hundred lien!"

"You took bets?"

"Yeah. I said you were straight, Blake said you were a lesbian."

"Well you better keep that hundred lien Blake."

"What? Why!" Yang asked frantically.

"Sashi asked me out too, and I said yes as well."

"Isn't that technically dating two people?"

"Hmm. Not really. They're basically the same person."

"I guess you're right. That makes…" Yang stopped and looked towards the bathroom. Weiss was confused at first, but then she heard it. Moaning. She looked towards the bathroom as well.

"Is that Ruby?" she asked.

"It better not be." Yang replied, hopping down from her bed. She walked to the bathroom and began banging on the door.  
"Ruby Rose! What are you doing in there!" She yelled. The door to the bathroom quickly opened. Ruby stood in the doorway in her pajamas. She had a toothbrush in her mouth.

"I'm brushing my teeth, calm down." She replied with a mouthful of toothpaste and foam.

The moaning continued even after Yang investigated the bathroom. Weiss was unsure where it was coming from. Then she heard her name being screamed loudly, followed by more moans. She began to blush deeply.

"H-Hey Yang. I-I know where the moaning is c-coming from."

"Where? It needs to stop, it's getting annoying."  
"I-its Sashi."

"Is she…?"

Weiss nodded silently.

"Damn, she's loud. I think these rooms are decently sound-proofed as well. "

The moaning suddenly stopped.

"Is she done yet?" Blake asked "It's hard to read with _that_ as background noise."

"I hope so." Ruby replied "It's making me feel weird."

Yang laughed. "Oh you're so innocent Rubes."

There was another scream, but this time it was one of pain instead of pleasure.

"Should we check on that? It sounded bad." Ruby asked.

"I dunno Rubes." Yang replied "It could actually be bad. Then we could be in trouble 'cause I don't want to fight someone in my PJ's."

"But Yang, what if someone is hurt? We could help them."

"That's true. Let's go then, right...after...I...change…" Yang trailed off, looking out the window.

Weiss gave Yang a confused look then followed her gaze out the window. She looked out the window, and saw nothing at first, but then she saw a pair of green and purple eyes looking into the room. The eyes looked around the room before locking onto Weiss, who was sitting completely still.

There was a light knock on the window. No one in the room moved to open the window, so the eyes knocked again. Again, no one moved. The eyes shook back and forth, as if whoever they belonged to was shaking their head. The eyes moved back from the window slightly and then quickly moved back towards the window, breaking it with what Weiss assumed was their head. Ruby screamed and ran behind Yang, using her as a shield. An arm reached in the broken window and opened it.

The figure leaned into the room through the window. They were wearing a black hoodie with the hood pulled over their head, black combat pants, and black boots. They also wore a mask that obscured most of their face, so only their heterocromatic eyes were visible. There was a symbol on the mask, which Weiss recognised as an icosahedron. She gasped slightly, but remained sitting out of a combination of fear and slight anger.

The figure reached behind itself, as if grabbing something. They turned their head as if to check behind them. Yang quickly used this to her advantage and ran at the figure. She swung at it once she was close enough, and she made solid contact with their stomach. The figure let out a gasp of air, and quickly swung back. Yang dodged their strike and punched the figure again, this time on the chin. The figure was knocked backwards and almost fell off the window frame, but they quickly regained their footing. The figure kicked at Yang, and Yang tried to dodge the strike but failed. The kick landed on Yang's cheek, and she stumbled backwards. The figure looked towards Weiss again, and Weiss saw a strand of purple hair in the figure's face.

"Sashi…?" She asked softly.

The figure nodded, then threw a small box at Weiss which landed on the bed next to her. Weiss looked at it and then back at Sashimasu.

"Love you." Sashimasu said, before jumping off the window.


	7. Chapter 7: Tapes

Professor Ozpin stood alone inside what was once Jace's room. He took a sip of his coffee, and continued staring at the same wall he had been since he arrived. He seemed to be searching for something in the gruesome scene in front of him.

The white wall was splattered with blood. A chalk outline marked where a boy once hung from the wall, bloody pieces of rebar going through the shoulders of the outline. Paramedics had taken the body away a few hours ago, and Ozpin just received word that he was going to live despite the condition he was in when he was found.

The door to the room opened, and two investigators entered. Ozpin turned towards them, finally taking his eyes off the wall.

"Professor Ozpin, a few questions." The first investigator asked, opening a notepad.

"Of course."

"There seems to be a trend in attacks at you school recently. Is this due to a new drug possibly going around the school?"  
"No."

"Do you know of any gangs or criminal outfits at your school?"

"No."

"Do you believe that these attacks were caused by a student at your school?"

"Yes."

"Can you give me any names?"

"Sashi Midori."

"Are you saying that this attack and the one from a few days ago are related?"

"Yes."

"Do you know her well enough to guess her motive?"

"No."  
"When was the first time you came into contact with Sashi?"

"Approximately one week ago."

"And was she this violent then?"

"No."

"Do you believe she was involved with any kind of organized crime?"

"No."

The investigator closed his note pad. "Alright, that's all we needed. I believe we have cleaners coming in a bit to clean this mess up. Thank you for your time." He tipped his hat and left, followed closely by the second investigator. Ozpin turned towards the wall again, taking a sip of his coffee silently.

* * *

Weiss sat alone in the library, the box that Sashi threw at her was sitting on the table in front of her. The box wasn't very big, probably about the same size as a deck of cards. She didn't want to open it as she was unsure of what was inside, especially since she heard what happened to the boy who disturbed her. Weiss had been debating whether or not to open the box for about an hour. Eventually she decided that she should open it, even though her better judgement was telling her not to.

She slowly tore the small strip of tape off the top of the box and pulled the flaps back. Inside the box was a piece of paper, a black card and a key. Weiss picked up the key and the card and set them on the table. She then grabbed the paper and opened it, revealing a note that was on the inside. The note was hastily written and hard to make out.

"Look for my symbol in the room with a speaking box."

She sat in confusion for a few seconds.

'The room? As in his room or mine? And a speaking box?' Then she remembered the box Jace showed her. 'His bathroom. But how will I get in there? There's a lot of people up there right now that won't like me being there.'

She looked at what was on the table. Beacon dorm rooms are unlocked by key cards, not keys, so the key was out of the question. The black card might work, but she doubted that it would since the dorms were opened by a person's scroll.

'I guess it won't hurt to try it.' she thought, standing up from the table. She returned to her room, formulating a plan on her way back.

* * *

Weiss waited until her teammates were asleep. She looked at the clock on the bedside table next to her, and it read 1:06 A.M. She got up quietly, put on her signature bolero jacket above her pajamas, and exited her room. She closed the door carefully as to not awaken any of her teammates.

"Can't sleep? Or are you up to no good?" Ren asked behind her.

Weiss gasped slightly "Ren! What are you doing up? Shouldn't you be asleep?"

He shrugged silently "Should you?"

"Good point. I'm just going to go now, bye Ren."

"You tried Weiss. And you failed." Yang said from the doorway behind Weiss.

"Y-Yang! Was I really that loud?"

"Yeah, you were. What are you trying to sneak off and do?"

Weiss sighed and quickly explained the situation to Yang.

"Sounds fun. Can I come along?"

"Might as well, you're already awake anyways."

"Cool, let's get going then."

Weiss and Yang made their way as quietly as possible to Jace's old room. Once they arrived they stood outside the door quietly.

"What now Ice Queen?" Yang whispered.

"Just give me a second." Weiss whispered back, reaching into her jacket pocket and pulling the black card out. She held it up to the door for a few seconds. She heard a clicking sound and the door opened slightly, She pushed it open all the way and entered, waiting for Yang to enter before closing it again. The same furniture was in the room as before, but it had all been cleaned and the room smelled heavily of cleaning chemicals.

"So what're we looking for?" Yang asked.

"His symbol, an icosahedron."

"A what?"

"Look for a bunch of triangles put together."

"Got it. Anywhere particular?"

"The bathroom."

They both entered the bathroom and began to search it thoroughly. The bathroom had been cleaned out, so that it looked like a regular bathroom instead of a workshop. After a few minutes of searching Weiss found his symbol scratched into the back of the tank cover on the toilet.

"Yang, I found it."

"Where?"

"The toilet."

"Great. Is it inside the toilet?"

"I think it's in the tank." Weiss lifted the tank cover off the toilet tank and set it down on the floor next to the toilet. She was surprised that the investigators had missed something this obvious. All the parts inside the tank were removed to make room for a large black container, which took up almost all the space in the tank. Weiss grabbed the top of the container and pulled it out of the tank, causing water to begin dripping onto the floor.

"Yang, grab me a towel please."

Yang quickly grabbed a bath towel and set it on the floor. Weiss set the box on top of the towel and began wiping it down with a nearby hand towel. The girls were sitting on the floor next to the box. Weiss spun the box around until she found the keyhole, which she pointed towards her. She produced the key from her jacket and inserted it into the box. Weiss turned the key and the box popped open slightly, signifying that it was unlocked. She removed the key and swung the box fully open, and much to Weiss's pleasure the box was waterproofed so none of it's contents were wet.

The box was divided into two sections, with the divider going down the middle of the box. On the left side was a handgun and a pair of gloves. Yang grabbed the gun out of the box and checked the chamber. Weiss looked up at Yang.

"It's loaded." She said "But I don't know what kinda bullets they are. Don't look like anything I've seen."

Weiss nodded silently and looked back down at the box. The right side was covered in padding. Weiss removed the large piece that was covering it and set it aside, revealing a tape recorder, eight cassette tapes, and a folded piece of paper lying underneath.

"Why was he using those?" Yang asked "That stuff is ancient."

"I don't know." Weiss replied "I hope it still works ."

The tapes were labeled one through eight. Weiss picked up the recorder and opened it, inserting the tape labeled one. She closed the recorder and hit the play button. The recorder crackled to life, playing a voice that Weiss recognised as Jace's.

"Today is February 6. Just repurposed some old tech I found around the facility, made this recorder. Seems to work pretty well so far. I hope to use it to log crucial events that happen here, but I only have seven other tapes so far. Gotta find more if I want to use this the rest of my life, and that's probably going to be really difficult." He paused, and someone could be heard shouting in the background. "Guess that means I gotta go." The tape ended.

Weiss looked up at Yang. Yang shrugged, so Weiss ejected the tape and set it back in the case. She inserted the tape labeled two and pressed play.

"April 14. A new girl arrived today, Sashi. She's pretty cool, and super hot. The best part is that she seems to like me even though we only met today. I don't know much about her, but I hope to change that in the coming weeks. It's not like we can go anywhere anyways, so might as well make it fun while we're here. Maybe this isn't going to be so bad after all. At least I can share this hell with someone else, make it more bearable."

Weiss took out the tape and inserted the one labeled three.

"May 20. Happy birthday to me. You know what I got for presents? Electroshock and more injections. They were in my legs this time, I guess that these black marks on my arms are enough for them for now. I feel like shit right, but at least I can say I lived 16 years. That has to mean something right? I think I'm going to ask Sashi to go out with me today, we've grown pretty close over these past few months so I think I have a pretty good shot. Maybe I'll go to the medbay first and snag some morphine, make this pain more bearable. I doubt they'd give me any though, those bastards. Probably going to have to steal it. Not like I haven't done it before..."

Weiss swapped tape three for tape four.

"September 20. Sashi and I have been going out for 4 months now. That's almost longer than I knew my parents." He laughed "Just give it another two years or so, then I can say that again and actually mean it. Daryl tried to escape today, got shot down as he ran out the front door. Snipers thought it'd be funny to shoot his balls before shooting his heart. I'm surprised they didn't tranq him and throw him into the Arena, let us all use our supposed powers that they've been giving us. I just feel like a stupid Beowolf if you ask me." He sighed "I'm working on something resembling a plan, might be able to get me out of here in one piece. I just don't know where I'd go if I made it out. Maybe I'll go to the beach and sit by the ocean for the rest of my life. Anywhere is better than being here really."

Weiss swapped tape four for tape five. Jace sounded as if he had been crying.

"They killed her! They fucking killed her! Then that sonofabitch Damien suggested that they put her in my head. I can hear all of her thoughts, all of my thoughts. My head is pounding. If I can get a gun I'd kill us both. He raped her. I'd feed him his own balls before killing him. Sam said he could find something to calm me down, a homemade drug or something. I don't care about the risks, I'll take whatever he gives me as long as it makes the voices go away. I just want it to stop."

Weiss switched tape five for tape six. Jace's voice was calm.

"May 1. Forgot I had this, I was too busy being a guinea pig. I've been slowly sorting through my thoughts, what's her's and what's mine. I can kinda remember things that she must have, maybe one day I'll be able to talk to her again." He drew a shaky breath "Sashi would have turned 17 today, and I'm turning 17 in a couple weeks. I was talking with SANN today, it said I might have a Semblance. It said it wouldn't tell the guards, but who knows what that robot will do. It's only semi-autonomous anyways, so can it really be trusted as an ally? Maybe I can use it to talk to Sashi again. More likely to get me outta here easily. I don't think I'm going to tell anyone of this plan that I've been working on, not even my own recorder. If it gets me killed, so what? Better than being here right?"

Weiss quickly inserted the seventh tape.

"It's happening. Sashi told me she's feeling really horny and that I need to pack up whatever I want to take with me. I'm putting all my stuff in a waterproof box for safekeeping, hopefully it will protect against blood right? I nabbed a gun from one of the night guards and did some modifications to it. That's going in here next to my gloves. Won't be needing it anytime soon. My plan is to have Sashi masturbate, 'cause she's really fucking loud, and hopefully a guard will check on 'me' since there's only supposed to be a guy in this room. Sashi is probably going to kill him since she hates being walked in on, so I'll just steal his clothes once Sashi's done and walk on outta here. I'll use his body as a decoy for as long as possible, but I'm not sure how long that will last. Nightguards are stupid anyways. One can hope though…"

Weiss inserted the eighth and final tape.

"I did it. WE did it. We rode right on out, no issues. Mimicry semblance probably made it easy though. Without it I'd still be in that stupid grey room." He paused, and a slurping sound could be heard "Took a good look at the sign as we rode past it. Atlas Biotech Labs. Fuck you. I don't know where I'm going now though. I grabbed a map at a store, and in somewhere called Atlas. Heard a couple guys talking about a place called Lily's. Local shop that repairs and sells cars. Probably going to go there and see what I can lay my hands on. Either a job or a car, whichever is going to get me more money. The guard only had 400 bucks on him and in his locker, it's a fair amount but if I want to get far away from here I'm sure I need more. At least I'm eating noodles right now instead of that shitty slop they fed us back in the facility. Bought a couple more tapes too, so now I got twenty. Going to make logs more often now that I'm out." There was a pause, and a slurping sound could be heard again "Sashi might have gone overboard with killing the guy though. I tried to keep her from stabbing anything covered in fabric so I could get a decent disguise, but she really went to town on the guy. Beat the tar outta him before taking his knife and stabbing 'em like a million times in the face. Nothing left but tiny bits of grey matter and blood basically. I'd hate to be on the receiving end of that, maybe she'd go easier on me since we were together once. We technically still are, but I guess that's up to her really." A pause "She's yelling at me right now, I can hear her. Shame the recorder can't record my thoughts. Maybe I can try to changing between her and I and hold up a conversation in person?"

The tape ended. Weiss ejected it and set the recorder and tape back down into the box. She then grabbed the paper out of the box and opened it. The paper was an ad for a mechanic shop in Atlas. Someone had circled the name of the shop and wrote "Safehouse" above it.

"Yang, do you think Ruby would like Atlas?" Weiss asked, looking up from the paper.

"Are you really going to go look for him?"

"Yes. No. I dunno. I just want to figure out if all these things he said are true. To think that this could be happening to innocent people. I don't want to think what else might be going on there. You saw what they did to him, and we both just heard how he was treated. I won't stand for it. I'm going to go, and whether you guys come or not doesn't matter to me."

Yang stood up above Weiss.

"I won't let you go alone. You can count me in. I'm sure Blake and Ruby would happily come along, even if you told them not to. We're a team, so we gotta stick together. And when one of our friends needs help, we gotta help them." she extended her hand towards Weiss "Now get up. We should get some sleep, 'cause I'm sure you are going to want to leave in the morning."

Weiss grabbed Yang's hand and pulled herself up. She picked up the box off the floor and the girls silently made their way back to their room.

* * *

The next morning Weiss awoke to the sounds of rustling fabric. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and saw Ruby sprinting around the room gathering clothes and other necessities and shoving them into a suitcase. Yang was laying on her bed listening to music and Blake was lying below her reading a book. Weiss grabbed her scroll from the bedside table and checked the time. 8:16 A.M. She sat up in bed and yawned.

"Morning sleepyhead." Yang said, looking over to her "For once you are the last one awake."

"Why are you all up so early?" Weiss asked.

Ruby stopped sprinting around "'Cause we want to go to Atlas! We've never been there before and we want to go really bad!" She resumed sprinting around.

"Yeah, something like that." Yang agreed. "I was looking at flights and the earliest one to Atlas is at 10. A flight leaves every hour after that until 9 tonight."

"Well we could take one of those," Weiss said "Or I could call up a private airship and be there in three hours instead of the five it usually takes to get there."

"Yeah, that sounds better." Yang agreed "I'm sure Rubes would explode from anticipation if she had to wait longer than she had to. So when can we leave?"

"Let me make a few calls, I'm sure we can leave by noon today at least." Weiss got up out of bed and entered the bathroom. She opened her scroll's contacts and swiped through them until she found her the contact she was searching for, Winter. She pressed the call button, and held her scroll to her ear. A few moments later her sister picked up.

"Hello?" Winter answered groggily.

"Hey Winter, I was calling to ask a favor…"

"This early Weiss? Is it really that important?"

"I mean yeah, kinda."

Winter sighed "What is it?"

"I need an airship. A fast one. So I can go to Atlas with my friends."

"Hmm. I see. Why call me and not father? I'm sure he'd just love you begging him for his charity."

"You and I both know that I want to make as little contact with him as possible."

Winter laughed "I'll see what I can do. I'm coming home as well, so I guess I'll see you there. Are you and your friends going to be staying in the house with father?"

"I'll have my friends stay in the penthouse in the city. We hardly use it anyways. But I suppose I will stay with you at the house."

"That's good. Goodbye Weiss."

"Goodbye Winter."

Weiss pulled the scroll away from her ear and closed it. She exited the bathroom and was greeted with the sight of Ruby and Yang scrambling away from the door, attempting to return to what they were doing before.

"Were you guys eavesdropping?" Weiss asked.

"Nah." Yang said casually.

"Yes!...I mean no!" Ruby exclaimed nervously.

Weiss shook her head "Anyways, I believe that we have an airship coming for us soon, so we should get packing."

"You're the only one who hasn't packed." Blake said flatly.

"I have clothes at home, so we're all set!"

"You're still in your PJ's." Yang informed Weiss, who looked down at herself. She quickly changed out of her pajamas and into her typical clothes like the rest of her teammates.

* * *

Team RWBY sat listlessly in the airship. It was larger than the usual airships they take for missions, and was outfitted for longer distance travel. The airship only had six seats inside it though, with three on each side of a table that was in the middle of the passenger area. A small refrigerator sat inside the center of the table that contained various foods and drinks. After waiting two hours for the airship to arrive at Beacon they had to take a three hour flight to get to Atlas. Weiss had spent most of the wait time trying to figure out where Jace could have gone. She had played the tapes for her team at the start of the flight hoping to get their input, but Yang and Ruby had fallen asleep halfway through the second tape and Blake seemed too busy reading a book.

After a while Weiss gave up on trying to form a plan and she began looking through the other items in the box she found in Jace's bathroom.

She began with the gloves, which were a solid black. She held them in her hands and they felt rough, almost as if they were made of a fine sandpaper. They were much larger than her hands. She put one on her right hand, and the inside of the glove was soft and silky. They seemed to be a perfect fit for her hands. She held the other glove up to her gloved hand, and the other glove looked bigger. She pulled the glove off of her right hand and held the two gloves together. They were the same size. Weiss set them back into the box and shook her head in confusion.

She took the handgun out of the box next. It was solid black and had a square design to it, with very few curves. The word "Ebullient" was scratched into the right side. Weiss guessed that this was the gun that Jace mentioned in his tapes, but it didn't appear to have any modifications done to it. She held it in her hand and pressed down a button on the grip behind the trigger, and the magazine fell out onto the table. Weiss flipped a switch up and down on the back of the gun, and a white line pointed to a white "S" when pushed up and a red "F" when pushed down. The gun didn't feel very heavy, Weiss guessed it weighed three or four pounds. Blake sighed in the seat across from her and Weiss looked up.

"You're going to shoot yourself, or one of us. Let me see that really quick."

Weiss handed the gun to Blake, who pulled the slide back on the gun. A bullet flew out of the chamber and landed on the table next to Blake. She pushed up a switch above the trigger and the slide locked open. She held the gun sideways towards Weiss.

"Let's go over some basics so you don't shoot one of us." Blake pointed to the button on the grip behind the trigger "This is the mag release, it drops the mag out. You probably could have guessed that." Blake moved her finger to the lever at the back of the gun "This is the safety, always have the line on 'S' for 'safety' so you don't shoot someone. That's probably all you really need to know." Blake set the gun down on the table and grabbed the bullet that was ejected from the gun.

"What kind of gun is it?" Weiss asked.

"Henry and Kriton HSO 55. This is a high grade military pistol. It's surprising that Jace was able to steal this, and out of a holster of a guard no less. I can see what he did to mod it."

"What'd he do?"

"We just by looking at the ammo he had loaded in there it appears as though he's not shooting standard rounds. These guns usually fire a mixture of a steel slug and burn dust, with the burn dust acting as a secondary ignition of sorts to keep the steel slug traveling very fast. Not to mention that whenever it impacts a target it's going to also deliver whatever burn dust is left over in the bullet, which adds more stopping power to the gun. Jace's rounds, however, are custom made. They don't have any slug on them, just solid crystal. You know what kind of dust this is?" She held the bullet out towards Weiss. Weiss looked at it for a few seconds. The crystal was in the shape of a bullet and was a dark green.

"My first thought would be air."

"Weiss, I'm going to be honest with you…"

"That's good."

"...I've stolen enough dust in my lifetime to tell you that this is not air dust. This is something that even I haven't seen before. It has to be a custom mixture, but I don't know of what."

"Oh."

"What I'm saying is we should be careful around these. They could do anything."

Weiss nodded and returned the pistol to the box along with the magazine and stray bullet. She closed the lid to the box and locked it before setting it on the floor below the seat next to her. A few silent moments later the pilot announced that they were preparing to land at the Schnee penthouse in downtown Atlas, so Weiss and Blake began waking Yang and Ruby.


	8. Chapter 8: Projection

**{AN} Hey guys, sorry for the super later chapter update. A lot of things have been happening lately in my personal life so I had to take some time off from writing. Everything's cleared up now so we should be back onto our usual schedule of chapter updates, which is probably going to be bi-monthly. Anyways I hope you enjoy this chapter. {END AN}**

Jace sat alone in the darkness. He was in a cave not far from downtown Atlas, with the intent on going into the city in the shadow of night. After the events of last night he ran around Vale until morning, then managed to steal an airship which he used to fly to Atlas. Jace was surprised that he made it as far as Atlas because he didn't know how to fly, and the burning wreckage outside the mouth of the cave was a testament to his landing skills.

"Sashi?" He whispered.

"Yeah." Sashimasu whispered back.

"Have our eyes changed back yet?"

"I dunno, let me check. Project me or something."

"You want to be projected? I've only done it once before so I dunno if that's a good idea."

"Do you see a mirror around here anywhere?"

Jace sighed "No."

"Exactly. Now you can either project me or suck it up."

Jace shook his head. "I'm afraid that it's going to kill us. I almost blacked out last time remember?"

"Well don't black out. Problem solved."

"Just forget I ever asked." He stood up "Let's find food, don't want to starve before getting to the city."

"You should check the wreck. Maybe you can find some BBQ in there."

"Oh haha, I get it. 'Cause I crashed it and set it on fire. Real funny."

"I only exist to make your life miserable!"

"Say what you want, I can still read your thoughts." Jace walked out of the cave and into the evening light. The airship was a few yards away from the mouth of the cave and most of the fire had subsided, so Jace began walking towards the wreckage.

"Are you seriously going to look for food in there?" Sashimasu asked.

"Might as well, I don't see any animals around. Do you?"

"I guess you're right. I call first dibs on any food we find."

"We are literally the same person, we both will get first dibs on whatever is left."

Jace reached the wreck and began looking through it. Most of the airship was in pieces scattered around the crash site, but the fuselage of the airship was in one piece. The fuselage was sitting in a small crater at the end of a long trench that was dug by the airship sliding across the ground. Jace approached the open side door of the airship, intent on looking through the many compartments on the walls and floor of the ship that he hoped were there. Jace noticed a logo on the side of the ship that he hadn't seen before. It was partially burned, but he could make out the remains of a white Atlas logo.

"Jace did we…" Sashimasu asked.  
"Yeah, we're screwed."

"There's no way we could have stolen a military ship, I thought we were in the civilian port!"

"Wait, this could be good. Maybe there's guns and food on here. We may be screwed but at least we could be screwed on a full stomach!"

"Jace, that phrase sounds really bad. I'm game! Let's go search that airship!"

Jace jumped into the fuselage and began searching every inch of the interior. After thirty minutes of searching, he found nothing.

"There has to be something here!" Jace cried "Food, guns, something!"

"There's plenty of food in prison, which is where you will probably be going for a long time." A feminine voice said behind him.

Jace spun around and saw a small army standing behind him. There was a woman dressed in what appeared to be a slightly modified Atlesian Specialist uniform, and behind her were 30 Atlesian Knight-200's. She had white hair that was up in a bun and she reminded Jace of Weiss.

'That's Winter!' Sashimasu said 'We can talk to her, maybe she'll let us go?'

"So tell me," Winter said "how does one of my ships gets stolen and I find it here, in pieces, and you are standing inside it."

Jace thought for a few seconds "I was hiking along and found the wreck."

"Then why did the pilot say the person who stole it had heterochromatic eyes?"

Jace shrugged "I know a few people who have heterochromatic eyes."

"He said that the left eye was green and the right eye was a pinkish-purple, like yours."

"Guess it's a coincidence."

"Then I guess that it is also a coincidence that your clothes are torn up seemingly from a crash of some sort?"

Jace looked down at himself and noticed that his clothes were torn in several places. "Yeah?  
"Are we going to do this the easy way or the hard way?"

"I wonder how I'll stack up against you. Your sister went down without a fight."

Winter's eyes narrowed "What did you do to Weiss?"

"One could say I stole something belonging to her. But I would suggest that you stand down. I would hate for her to live knowing that I met you via a fight."

Winter drew her weapon in her right hand "I don't know what you are playing at, but I would suggest you stop before I make you stop."

"My bad, that was a low blow. I'll play less dirty from now on."

Winter took a step towards him, making a motion with her hand. The robots began to form a circle around Jace.

"That's a dumb move. Spreading your troops thin." Jace taunted, readying his fists.

"One more word from that mouth and I will gladly give them the command to shoot you."

Jace lowered his fists and fell to his knees, changing his appearance to look like Weiss.

"Please Winter, don't do this. Don't hurt your own sister!"

Winter down at him "Weiss…"

"Winter please!"

Winter lowered her sword slightly, but quickly steadied it again. "You're not Weiss! Get out of my head!"

Jace Stood up and returned to his normal appearance. "You've got to give me credit for at least trying right?"

Winter glared at him "Your mind games won't work on me."

Jace closed his eyes "Ready?" he seemingly asked no one in particular.

Winter readied herself for combat. Jace took a step forward and fell to his knees, holding his hands up.

"I surrender."

Winter gave him a confused look, but remained vigilant "Don't try anything, I'll have them shoot you if you do."

"I won't. You are clearly leagues better than me, so what's the point in even trying."

Winter sheathed her sword and began walking towards him slowly. She produced a pair of handcuffs and held them in her left hand.

"Put your hands on your head, and don't make any sudden movements."

Jace complied, and as Winter approached him he remained motionless. She reached her right hand out and grabbed Jace's left wrist, but as soon as she touched his wrist he began speaking.

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death I project her upon you, allowing her to walk this world once again."

Winter froze. Jace fell face first onto the ground and began to twitch violently for a few seconds. Once the twitching stopped, he laid silently on the ground. Winter stood up straight and moved towards Jace, standing above his seemingly lifeless body. She knelt down beside him and whispered to him.

"Stand down." she called out to the robotic soldiers who immediately obeyed. "You'd better get going before she thinks twice about letting you go." Winter grabbed Jace's arm and lifted him to his feet, supporting his weight on her.

"Are you...going to...come back?" Jace wheezed.

"Of course I will, I'm just getting us away from here. I know so much now about Atlas that we could probably have enough blackmail for years. If I can remember it all."

"Don't worry...about that. Just get...us out...of here."

Winter laughed "Calm down, we only need to go a little further."

Winter and Jace made their way out of the circle of robots and to the edge of the crash site. Winter sat Jace down next to a tree and looked over her shoulder at the robots behind her. They were still nearby, but they had thankfully not followed her.

"OK, so her ship is about fifty yards straight behind you in a clearing. We can take that and get into town quicker, or we could run past it and be in town by nightfall. Your choice I guess. I'll come back now."

Winter placed both of her hands at the base of Jace's neck. She took a deep breath and began to speak. "In failing we gain nothing but knowledge. We use this knowledge to bind our souls into one, allowing us to be reunited once again." Upon speaking the final word Winter fell backwards. Jace sprung up with a newfound energy and began running through the forest. He passed a clearing with a few ships landed in it with no intent to steal a second ship in one day.

"OK, so no ship. Where are we going to go now?" Sashimasu asked Jace.

"You know exactly where I was thinking. Why ask?" he replied.

"You aren't seriously going back to _her_ are you?"

"Yes Sashi. I am going back to _them_."

Sashimasu growled at him "You know I hate that fox."

"You're just jealous that's all."

"Shut up and keep running."

 _~~Earlier that day~~_

Weiss unlocked the door to the foyer of the penthouse, the rest of her team standing eagerly behind her. After several hours of waiting everyone on the team was ready to finally arrive at their destination. Weiss swung the door open and Ruby practically flew inside, closely followed by Yang. Blake hesitated before entering, and Weiss was the last to enter, closing the door behind her.

The penthouse was on the 51st floor of a business tower. The foyer lead directly into a combined kitchen and dining area. There were two doors on either side of the kitchen, one that lead to a laundry room and another that opened into a long hallway. There was a door on either side of the hallway, and a door at the end of the hall lead to a terrace outside. Each of the doors on either side of the hall lead to identical bedrooms. The dining room connected to a large living room with several sliding glass doors. A door in the living room lead to a small hallway that connected to the master bedroom.

The penthouse was lavishly furnished and had cutting edge appliances and technology. Hardwood floors extended throughout the whole penthouse, and rugs were used to add color and texture contrast to the space. The penthouse was painted varying shades of blue, ranging from dark blue in the kitchen to sky blue in the bedrooms.

"This place is amazing Weiss!" Ruby said in awe as she ran around exploring every room.

"Yeah." Yang agreed, following Ruby's lead.

"It's nice, but I don't like the thought of staying here." Blake said flatly.

Weiss grabbed Blake's shoulder "I know you may not like it, and if you'd like I could rent you a hotel room nearby."

Blake shook her head "I think I'll manage for a week. Your father won't stop by will he?"

"I seriously doubt it, he hates it here for some reason."

"That's good." Blake began to explore the penthouse as well. After several minutes, Weiss managed to regroup her teammates in the livingroom.

"I sent a key to each of your scrolls that will allow you to use the elevator to reach up here and get into the penthouse." Weiss said "Unless you guys have any questions I should get going. My father hates it when I'm late once I set a deadline for him."

Ruby raised her hand "How will we get food?"

"Well you could buy it yourself, or there is a book next to the phone that has numbers for people that can do it for you."

"You mean servants?" Blake asked.

"Not really." Weiss replied "They get paid appropriately for their work."

"Are they Faunus?"  
"No. Well at least last time I was here I didn't notice any."

"Let's hope not."

There was a moment of silence "Any more questions?" No one made a noise "Alright, if you think of anything you have my number so feel free to call me." She exited the penthouse after waving goodbye to her friends. She was about to reboard the airship when her phone vibrated. She pulled it out of her pocket and saw she had a message from Winter.

" _An unexpected event came up. Tell father that I will be late for dinner."_

Weiss groaned 'Great. I have to be the first one to receive his anger. This is going to be a fun night.' She replaced her scroll in her pocket and boarded the airship once again.


	9. Chapter 9: Finding the Path

**{AN} I've got a few things to say and don't want to keep you guys waiting, so there's going to be a long AN at the bottom. I hope you enjoy chapter 9! {END AN}**

Jace stood outside a small building just outside of downtown Atlas. The building was on a lot about the size of a city block, which was surprising judging that the lot itself was only a half of a mile from one of the largest cities in the kingdom. The lot was surrounded by a seven foot high chain link fence with barbed wire on the top. The building Jace stood in front of was made of cinder blocks, and had a steel roof that slanted slightly to one side. The building was small, probably about 2000 square feet, and sat at the corner of the lot. The lot itself was full of various vehicles for all types of travel, from boats to cars to planes, all in different states of repair. A large red neon sign on top of the building read "Lily's Mechanic and Scrapard."

Jace had been walking most of the day to arrive here, and had almost nothing to eat or drink, but he didn't care. His mind was racing. He hadn't been to this place in about a year, but it almost felt like home to him.

"Are you just going to stand there or are you going to go in?" Sashimasu asked him.

"I dunno, I just feel...weird. Like I shouldn't be here." he responded.

"Of course you should be here. They're like your family, or at least they were like it. Depends on whether or not the guards got to them after we left."

"Don't say things like that Sashi, it's bad luck." Jace slowly walked towards the steel door that led into the building. He stopped just before the door and drew a breath, then he walked in.

A bell rang as the door was pushed open, and a female voice called out from somewhere.

"Be there in a minute!"

The inside of the building had grey concrete walls, a grey linoleum floor, and a few dim lights giving the area a very plain, almost unappealing, feeling. Jace stood in a waiting area, facing towards a wall that divided the building in half. A door sat on one end of the wall, and a portion of the wall was removed halfway to make a counter where a computer and a cash register sat. Jace stood in the doorway of the shop and let out a small sigh of relief.

"I think she's alright Sashi. You got lucky this time." he whispered to himself. A few seconds later he heard movement from behind the counter.

"How can I…"

A female faunus stood behind the counter. She had light brown, almost white, hair that went just past her shoulders and light brown fox ears on top of her head. A long, bushy tail the same color of her hair could be seen swishing behind her. Her voice was smooth and sweet, and reminded Jace of chocolate pudding.

"Jace?" the faunus said happily "Is that you?!" She moved behind the counter, opening the door to her left.

"It's good to see you Lily." Jace replied. "How's Noble?"

"The same as always" Lily replied "he's in back right now, I'm sure you want to see him." She motioned for Jace to enter, so he did. The area behind the counter was full of filing cabinets, and a large table sat in the middle of the room with several stacks of paper on it. There was a staircase leading down directly behind the door. It was made of a light brown hardwood, which was a stark contrast to the grey floor that was around it, and had thirty steps. Jace walked down the stairs slowly, reminiscing on events that seemed far away, but were only a few months ago. The time he had spent here almost made him feel at home again, until it was torn away from him. However his reminiscing was cut short when he hit the wall at the bottom of the stairs. Lily laughed lightly behind him.

"They must have really messed you up" she said quietly "to have taken you out like they did. Must have thought you were important or something." Jace silently nodded in response, rubbing his forehead lightly where it had hit the wall. He turned to his right, and was facing a large open space that seemed to be about half the size of the building above him and resembled a living room. There was a medium sized television hanging above a shelf, a black leather couch with several pillows on it, and a few tables that had various objects on them, such as a lamp, a sculpture, and photographs. However, there was no hardwood floors or colorful paint on the walls like a regular living room. Instead, the floor, walls, and ceiling were all a grey metal, which Jace learned was three feet of steel with an additional five feet of concrete above that. There were two other doors across the room, each set an equal distance from the wall and each other.

"I remember the first time you told me what this place was made of, " Jace said, laughing slightly "I thought you guys were some kind of freaks, getting this kind of protection. But that was before I really knew the reason..."

Lily sighed, and began walking across the room to the door on the left "Not everyone is as accepting of our...pair as you are. Both human and faunus alike…" Jace followed her to the door. "Noble is just through here, but he may be recording." Lily smiled, turning the handle and pushing the door open silently.

As soon as the door was opened Jace could tell that Noble was recording, like Lily had said. The room was approximately one hundred square feet, and resembled an office. There was a large, brown desk, an office chair, and a computer with three monitors sat on the desk. However, the entire room was covered in anime posters, figurines, and other anime paraphernalia. There was a camera setup behind the monitors that was used to record ones' face. Noble was sitting at the desk, with a game on the center monitor, what appeared to be a real-time chat log on the monitor to his right, and his screen and camera views were displayed on the left monitor. Jace leaned over to get a look at what Noble was playing, and saw it was something called Megadimension Yeptunia VII. 'Must be a new game.' Jace thought, glancing over towards Nobles right monitor. The rate at which the chat feed had been scrolling had increased since Jace had entered the room, and Noble glanced over at it.

"There's someone in my room?" Noble said "And you're sure it's not Lily?" Noble turned around, and looked at Jace silently. He then took off his headset that he was wearing and stood up.

"I'll be right back." Noble said, never taking his eyes off Jace.

Noble walked towards Jace and held out his hand to give him a handshake. Jace took Noble's hand and shook it firmly, and after the handshake Jace pulled him into a firm but short hug.

"It's good to see you again Noble." Jace said after breaking the hug.

"It's great to see you too." Noble replied. He looked around the room for a second "Uhh here! Have a seat! I just started the stream and I think you'll like this new game." Noble quickly ran out of the room and returned a few seconds later with a folding chair, which he set up next to his at the desk.

Noble was about six feet tall, had short brown hair, and a scruffy beard that wasn't fully grown in. He spoke in a way that was very plain sounding, but had an intoxicating quality to it. He seemingly had an obsession with anime, but Jace knew that Noble had a passion for anime instead of an obsession.

"What kind of game is this Noble? Is it one of those visual novels?" Jace asks.

"Well, not quite." Noble replies, putting his headset back on "There is some gameplay to it." He laughs a little at his own joke. Noble then looks into the camera and begins to address his audience.

"Alrighty folks, we have a special guest on today's stream! This is Jace, an old friend. Let's get some booty slaps in chat!"

Jace looked towards the monitor to the right, and the chat feed was going crazy with what appeared to be a hand slapping a butt. This confused Jace momentarily, but then he remembered that that was Noble's way of welcoming people, such as subscribers to his stream.

Jace laughed happily at his current situation. He felt like he was where he belonged again, and he enjoyed the feeling. However, he couldn't help but wonder how Weiss and the rest of team RWBY was right now…

* * *

Across town, in a large mansion

* * *

Weiss was laying on her bed in her room, which was very large but only contained a bed, a dresser, and a nightstand with a lamp on top. The room was all various shades of light blue or white, with light blue baseboards, white carpet, white walls, and a sky blue ceiling. She had arrived at her house almost an hour ago, but she hadn't spoken to anyone. She knew she needed to speak to someone eventually, but she didn't want to. All she wanted to do right now was to ask Jace what was going on, but she couldn't even do that. She sighed, and rolled onto her side. She looked out of her window, wondering where he could be. Jace wasn't answering his scroll, and he hadn't tried to make any other sort of contact with her. Where could Jace be...

Weiss's train of thought was broken by her scroll buzzing. She quickly got up and moved to her dresser, which is where her scroll was lying. She had received a message from Ruby, a message with an attachment. Weiss opened the message, the attachment was a picture which began downloading as she read the short message.

 _R -_ " _You need to see this. I don't know what else to say"_

Weiss looked at the picture, which was done downloading. She stared at it for a few seconds in confusion. It was a picture of a man with brown hair and a scraggly beard playing a video game. But then she saw it. Someone leaving the gamers room. Someone with black tattoos on his arms that seemed to have no real defined path. Someone who looked like Jace. she quickly messaged Ruby back.

 _W - "Where did you find this? Who is that?"_

 _R - "i was watching the brown haired guy, noble, play this game and he said that there was a special guest named jace. I dunno where he live though…"_

 _W - "Give me the link to his gaming channel."_

 _R - " /lostpause"_

 _W - "Thanks"_

Weiss clicked the link, but before she could investigate there was a loud knock on her door. She set her scroll down on her dresser.

"Come in." She called to the air.

Her door opened, but instead of a butler entering it was her father. He seemed slightly happy, but it was difficult for Weiss to tell because he father almost never smiled.

"Oh. Father. It is a pleasure to see you."

"Yes, yes. Let's talk for a moment." he motioned towards the bed. "Have a seat."

Weiss obeyed and sat on the end of the bed. Her father paced the room in front of her slowly.

"What is it father?" Weiss asked.

"Business, Weiss." He replied "Just a few moments ago I had the pleasure of speaking to a couple of scientists from Atlas Biotech Labs. They were adamant that you come in and take a tour of their labs. I went ahead and cleared your schedule for tomorrow so you can spend the whole day there. This will be good for the company, so I hope you enjoy science and medicine as much as I told them you did. You leave at nine AM tomorrow. Have fun." He then left the room, closing the door behind him.

Weiss sat in shock, not knowing what to say or do. After a few moments she got up and returned to her dresser. She picked up her scroll and pressed on the link that Ruby had sent to her. Her screen went dark for a second, before flashing to life. She saw a screen that had various animated women on it with the words "Intermission" written across the center of the screen. She looked in the top right corner of the screen and saw a camera. The brown haired man wasn't there, but Jace was. He seemed to be answering questions that the chat was asking. Weiss thought for a moment, then pressed on a box that said "Send a message!" and typed in a message. She then pressed send and set her scroll down. She walked back over to her bed and laid down on it, sighing.

"I hope this works." She said aloud to herself.

* * *

Basement room, under "Lily's Mechanic and Scrapyard"

* * *

"I dunno, it's some weird kind of tattoo I got on a boat from Vacuo to Mistral" Jace said, holding up his arm to the camera. He had been answering questions that people were asking him on Noble's stream to keep the people entertained while Noble got something to eat. Jace lowered his arm, and he was about to get up and get a drink when one comment caught his eye.

Guest127493- "Atlas Biotech Labs, 9am. WS"

Jace looked at the message for a few seconds before getting up and leaving the room. As he exited the office, he saw Noble and Lily talking in the living room area. Lily looked at Jace as he continued to move towards the stairs that lead to the office area.

"Where are you going?" Lily asked "Just taking a walk?"

Jace turned towards her "I need to take a look around your lot, I think I might have left something there when I was here last time."

"Ok?" Lily said confused. She accompanied Jace upstairs, and followed him outside. She opened a large gate that lead to the scrapyard lot.

"Are you going to stay the night with us after you're done out here? It's getting pretty dark." Lily asked.

"Yes, I think I will if that's alright with you and Noble." Jace replied.

"Of course that's alright! Just make sure to lock this back after you're done out here." Lily then went back inside.

Jace walked to the back corner of the lot at a steady pace. He knew what her was looking for, and where it was, all he had to do was get there. He made his way through the rows of cars, boats, and planes that littered the lot until he reached his destination. There was a small tree in the corner of the lot. He knelt down and dug next to the tree with his hands until he couldn't dig any further. He had hit his objective, which was a metal case that was about one foot long and half a foot a wide. He fully dig the case out and pushed the loose dirt back in, covering the hole. He stood up, case in hand, and made his way back inside, locking the gate behind him.

 **{AN}Hey all, sorry for the long wait time on this chapter. I had quite a few things going on in my personal life, pertaining to family, school, and work, but we are back now with our regularly scheduled chapter uploading. I hope that I wont have to upload a chapter every 4 months, but rather every 4 weeks at max. I appreciate all the support I have gotten so far on the story, and I look forward to writing more for all of you guys to enjoy. {END AN}**


	10. Chapter 10: The Meeting, Part 1

Weiss stood in front of a mirror that hung just inside the front door of her house. She was looking herself over to make sure she was presentable for the meeting she had with, presumably, the CEO of the Atlas Biotech Labs. She was wearing an all white suit at her father's request, but she would much rather be wearing a skirt or dress of some kind.

'How can Winter fight in one of these.' Weiss thought 'Everything about this suit is uncomfortable.'

She sighed and turned away from the mirror, pulling her scroll out of a pocket inside her blazer to check the time. 8:59.

'They should be here soon.' Weiss continued to look at her scroll, hoping for the time to never change. She didn't want to go to the meeting, she didn't want to go to the place that, if what Jace said was true, mad people into the creatures of Grimm. The time on her scroll changed to 9:00.

There was a knock on the door. Weiss stared at it. She didn't want to answer it. She didn't want to door to open. She saw her father appear out of the corner of her eye.

"They have arrived Weiss." Her father said coldly "Go on, open the door for them."

Weiss hesitantly obeyed, slowly making her way over to the door and opening it slowly.

Two men stood on her doorstep. They were both the same height, which was at least six and a half feet tall. The men doth wore black pants, black shirts, black trench coats, and black fedoras. Both men were completely bald, and a pair of mirrored sunglasses obscured their eyes. The only difference that Weiss noticed is that the man to her left had olive skin and the man on her right had pale, white skin.

"Ms. Schnee" the man on the left said. His voice was low and made Weiss feel uneasy.

"Are you ready?" the man on the right said. His voice was a bit higher pitched than the man on the left, but it made Weiss feel just as uneasy.

"Uh…" Weiss said, stammering at first. She quickly regained her composure. "Yes. I am ready."

"Good." the man on the left said, turning and motioning towards a car behind him "Let's go."

Weiss exited the house with a false confidence, but she was absolutely terrified. She kept thinking of the movies she has seen where men in all black take people away, never to be seen again. She silently got into the backseat of the car, which was a blacked out SUV, and buckled the seatbelt. The two men got in the front seats, with the pale man getting in the driver's seat. The man started the car, and the once clear windows became opaque. Weiss looked around franticly. The man in the passenger seat turned around and looked at her.

"Do not be afraid. This is for security reasons. I can assure you that nothing bad will happen to you here." he then turned back around and looked out the front window.

Despite what the man had said, Weiss was still terrified. Why didn't they want her to see out of the side windows? Did they not want people to see them with her? Were they afraid that she was going to attract too much attention to them? She had many questions, but all she could think of at the moment was whether or not Jace had gotten her message. In fact, that is what she was thinking about all morning. She sat back in her seat and waited for the men to tell her when it was time to get out.

* * *

The ride seemed to go by surprisingly fast. Weiss didn't know if it was because they were traveling at a high rate of speed or because of the almost complete silence in the car. After what seemed like only a few minutes, the windows on the SUV became clear again, and Weiss could tell the were not close to the main city at all. She knew this because the car was driving on a two lane road up a hill, and she could see the city she was in a little while ago. She then looked out the front windshield. She was surprised at the simplicity of the building.

The building was sitting at the top of the hill, and it appeared to be circular. The building was constructed of a light grey material that resembled steel or aluminum. However, the majority of the building was made of glass. Weiss was unable to see through it for some reason, but she just assumed that it was because there were rooms built in the middle. Two large fences surrounded the entire facility, each approximately fifteen feet tall. The fences were made of steel bars in a grid pattern, and there were several feet in between the fences. A large, square blue and grey sign sat just outside the fences, next to the road. On the left side of the sign there was a circle with what appeared to be a picture of a Nevermore printed on it, and on the right side there was the letters "ABL" and an illegible sentence below the letters.

The SUV was driving towards two gates just as high as the fences next to it, but made of chain link instead of steel bars. As the car got close to the gates, both gates opened simultaneously. Weiss remained silent as the car pulled up to the front of the building. The vehicle stopped, and Weiss unbuckled her seatbelt. The man with olive skin spoke to her without turning around.

"Follow us as soon as you get out. Don't go running off anywhere, or bad things will happen."

Both of the men stepped out of the car in unison and began walking towards the building, Weiss following close behind them. A short walkway lead them from the car to a set of double doors, and the interior of the building.

The inside of the building was a dull grey from the floors to the ceiling. Weiss looked around for any scrap of color other than grey. Grey chairs, grey tables, grey lamps, grey uniforms. She stuck out in her white suit, which was apparent by almost everyone in her line of sight looking at her. Almost everyone. There was one guard who wasn't looking in here direction. He looked familiar, but Weiss' line of sight was broken by one of the men before she could tell who it was.

"Follow me." the pale man said, walking to Weiss' left. Weiss followed obediently. She looked out of the wall of windows as she walked, hoping to see something other than grey. Eventually the man in front of her stopped next to a door. He turned towards it and opened it, motioning for Weiss to enter. She entered the room, and saw only two chairs and a table. A single light hung above the table.

It was an interrogation chamber.

Weiss turned around about to ask the man who brought her why she was here, but the door was slammed shut in her face. Weiss began to panic. She frantically tried the handle, but it was locked from the outside. She looked around the room for any exit, but was unable to find anything. She tried the door again, but it was still locked. She took a deep breath, and sat down in one of the chairs. She had to think this through. However, only a few seconds after she sat down the door was opened, and a man walked in.

He was probably in his mid-thirties but looked almost exactly like her father. He had the same hairstyle, the same moustache, and he even wore a similar suit as her father sometimes wore, except the man's suit was grey instead of white and blue.

He entered the room alone, and sat down across from Weiss. He looked at Weiss for a few seconds before speaking.

"Ms. Schnee." he said. He had a deep voice and he spoke slowly, almost like he knew something about Weiss that she didn't know. "Do you know why I brought you here?"

"B-Business?" Weiss asked.

The man chuckled slightly "No." He stood up. "Do you know who I am?"

"No."

"I am the head of research and development here at Atlas Biotech. You can call me whatever you like, but most people call me The Creator."

"Why is that?"

"It doesn't matter now." He said, walking behind Weiss. He stopped behind her for a few seconds before walking in front of her again. "Do you know the phrase 'Dress for success'?"

Weiss nodded silently.

"Good. Then you may know why I resemble someone from your family." He began to laugh crazily. After a few seconds he regained his composure and sat back down. THe Creator leaned in towards Weiss.

"You have met one of my creations already, correct? A few in fact."

"Your creations?" Weiss asked, knowing full well what he was talking about.

"Yes! My creations! I believe that one of them ate someone right in front of your eyes!" He leaned in further towards Weiss.

"I-I heard about that, but I don't know what you're talking about. I've never met any of your creations. What do they look like?"

The Creator slammed his fist on the table. "You're lying! I've seen the video! You were there!" He stood up. "Let me go get one to rough you up a bit! Stay here!"

He then quickly exited the room. Weiss sat still for a few seconds before jumping up and frantically searching for a way out. She tried the door again, but it was still locked. She looked for anything, a vent, a window, anything. But she found nothing.

Then she heard it.

The door opened, and a guard stood in the doorway. It was the guard from earlier, the familiar looking one. Weiss didn't know what to do, so she charged him hoping to escape. To Weiss' surprise, the guard opened his arms as if to catch Weiss. She continued to run at the guard, not knowing if she should stop. After a second she tackled him, knocking both herself and the guard into the hallway. She tried to get up, but the guard was holding her tightly. She struggled to escape his grasp.

"You're not going anywhere Snowflake."

Weiss stopped struggling. She looked at the guard's face, which was inches from hers. It was Jace.

"J-Jace?! How'd you get here?!" She cried.

"Keep your voice down!" He said, attempting to stand up. "I'll explain as we walk, now stand up."

Weiss got up, followed by Jace.

"Let's walk." Jace said, taking Weiss' hand. Weiss blushed slightly, but didn't resist.

Jace began walking the opposite way that Weiss had come from.

"So I think you need to see the stuff they don't want you to see. But we're going to need a distraction." He looked at Weiss, before stopping in front of what appeared to be an elevator.

"Jace…?" Weiss began, but trailed off. Jace looked her in the eyes, before producing a folded piece of paper from his right pocket.

"Trust me, I'll be fine." He handed her the piece of paper. "Know how to use a gun?"

"Why?" She asked.

"I'll take that as a no." He said, rubbing his chin. "What about a knife?"

"I use a rapier?" She said quizzically.

"I know that. I'm asking if you know how to use a knife."

"I guess so. It can't be that different, right? But why do I need one?"

"Trust me, you'll want one down there."

"Down where?"

"Down in the Caliginosity."

"The what?"

"The Grimm factory."

"What?!"

"You'll be behind a lot of armor, but the scientists don't like it when you're down there. Just flash this at them and they'll shit themselves and run off."

"But won't they know who I am?"

"That's where this cones in." Jace grabbed a duffel bag that was lying on the floor next to the elevator. He unzipped it and produced a mask from it, handing it to Weiss. It was a Grimm mask, similar to the ones the White Fang wore, but it covered the wearer's face completely.

"Put in on." Weiss grabbed the mask and put the mask up to her face, and it seemed to stick magically.

"Now that elevator isn't going to open unless it gets sent up from the bottom. I'll cause a distraction which will lead some of the guards up from down there. Slip into the elevator as soon as everyone is out of it. Enter that code into the elevator, then press the down arrow. There will be a hallway as soon as you get out. On the right side there will be a room titled 'Observation Room'. Go into that room. Take a look, and maybe some pictures, then get out."

"How do you know this stuff? And how am I going to get out?" Weiss asked.

"There should be a room right across that says 'Storage' or something similar. Go in there, then look for a large crate that is labeled with a bunch of random symbols. They should look like Grimm markings. Open it, get into the suit, and run out. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Just get back to your friends safely. Oh and take the suit to the address that's also on that paper. I'm sure that the owner will want that suit."

Weiss unfolded the paper to look at the code and the address. The code seemed to be fifteen random numbers and letters, and the address was for a mechanic's shop that Weiss had heard of once before.

'Lily's,' she thought 'If I remember correctly my father tried to shut them down because the owner is a faunus.' She looked at Jace.

"Why here?"

"She'll know you're coming." Jace replied "Ask for Lily." There was a shout in the distance, and it sounded very angry. Jace turned towards the shout.

"The Creator." His voice was dripping with disgust. He turned towards Weiss "That's my cue. Remember the plan, and stay safe. Do not be afraid to stab any guard who tries to hurt you. They're mostly robots anyways."

"Like Penny? And mostly? Whats that supposed to mean?" Weiss asked.

"Sure, I guess. Dunno who that is but if it helps you than yes." Jace produced another mask from the bag. This mask was very different from the one he gave Weiss. It was circular, and looked more like a face. The top half of the mask was white and the bottom half was a blood red. A wicked smile was carved into the mask where a person's mouth would usually be, and the areas around the eye holes were jet black. When Jace put it on, It gave Weiss the chills. His emerald green eyes stood out, reminding Weiss of the first time she met him.

"You have now dodged three of my questions." Weiss said angrily "Are you hiding something from me?"

"Make that four. Now let's stage a robbery gone wrong." Jace said, reaching into the duffle bag again. "What do you think I should wear? I'm thinking a suit. No! No! A bomb disposal suit!"

"Would that actually protect you?" Weiss asked.

"Only as well as these clothes would." Jace said "Only downside of being able to alter the appearance of my clothes. They don't protect me anymore than they usually would. But at least I don't have to pack a change of clothes whenever I go out." He laughed a little, then removed a pistol from the bag.

"Have fun!" Jace said happily before running down the hallway towards the shouts.


	11. Chapter 11: The Meeting, Part 2

**{AN} Alright, chapter 11. This one has a little bit of gore that may not be suitable for some readers! You have been warned! {End AN}**

A few moments after Weiss lost sight of Jace she heard several gunshots ring throughout the building, followed by a lot of screaming. A large group of people ran past Weiss from the direction Jace ran in, presumably to escape the gunfire. A group of guards ran towards the gunfire, completely ignoring Weiss who was now crouching down next to the elevator.

'Why am I just going along with this?' she thought, looking at the knife in her hands. 'I could just leave right now, no one would ask any questions. Jace wouldn't know, would he?' She then heard a ding, followed by a swooshing sound. The elevator had arrived.

Several guards stepped out of the elevator, and once Weiss figured they were all gone she stood up and hopped into the elevator. The door closed, and she let out a sigh of relief. She saw a control panel on the wall next to the door, along with an up button and a down button. She moved towards the panel and entered the code that was on the paper into it, then pressed the down button. The elevator sprung to life, traveling down at a fast pace. After only a few seconds, the elevator stopped and the doors opened.

Weiss was looking down a hallway. She exited the elevator and began walking down the hallway, knife in hand, searching for the room Jace described. Despite the hallway appearing to be bright and full of life, it was eerily silent.

After only a few moments of walking Weiss found a door labeled 'Observation Room RR36'. She turned around and looked at the door that was behind her. It was labeled 'Storage Room E46' and Weiss assumed that these were the rooms Jace was talking about. She turned back around to face the door labeled 'Observation Room RR36' and let out a sigh.

'I can still leave.' Weiss thought to herself 'The suit's just behind me. Hopefully.'

Her hand was hovering over the button to open the door. After a moment she sighed again and pushed it. The door opened, revealing a small room with a chair in the middle. Weiss approached the chair and noticed a control panel of some sort on the left arm. The control panel had several colorful buttons on it along with a joystick. Weiss sat down in the chair, which was surprisingly comfortable despite its metallic appearance. She set her knife down to her right and looked at the wall in front of her.

The wall changed from a deep black color to a blinding white. After her eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness, Weiss noticed that the screen displayed several options. She assumed they were for different areas of the lab, as the titles ranged from 'Research and Development' to 'Full-Scale Testing'. Weiss chose one called 'Living Quarters Observation' first, hoping that it was the least mentally scarring.

After a few seconds, the white screen changed into several smaller screens. Weiss used the joystick to highlight the different camera views. The views were separated into three sections: "Dining Area", "Rooms", and "Yard". Weiss hovered over the rooms section, which were in order from one to twenty in rows of four. All of the numbers were blue, except for the last two rows which were red. Weiss selected the room labeled "Room 1" and pressed the enter button on the arm of the chair. A camera feed instantly appeared showing the room.

Weiss gasped.

The "room" was about the size of a janitor's closet, and looked about the same. There was no distinct bed, only tatters of fabric that seemed to be the remnants of one. A single light hung in the middle of the room but it lit up the space surprisingly well. There was a toilet and a sink in the corner of the room, but both were in a very poor condition. The door to the room was open, but it appeared to be made of a very thick metal. The room currently had no occupant in it.

Weiss exited the camera feed from Room 1, and chose a different room with the hopes that it would look better. She selected one of the last blue rooms on the list, labeled Room 11.

Room 11 was much larger than Room 1, and much cleaner. Room 11 was a pure white room, without any form of dirt or dust visible. The mattress was fully intact and had a set of blue sheets on it. The toilet and sink appeared to be in good working order as well. This room was the exact opposite of Room 1.

Weiss returned to the room selection and set her sights on one of the rooms labeled in red. She selected the fourth red room, Room 16.

The lights in the room were off, and it appeared to be empty. There was no furniture in the room at all, only a sink and a toilet. Weiss then selected the next room, Room 17, and it was in the same state as Room 16. Room 18 and 19 were both empty as well. Weiss thought that Room 20 would be the same, so she didn't see the need to look at it, but she looked at it anyways.

And immediately regretted it.

A face flashed in the camera, causing Weiss to scream. It was there for less than a second before disappearing into static. After a few seconds the static went away, revealing the room behind. After Weiss finished panting to regain her breath and her senses, she looked into the screen.

The room was covered in a deep rust color. There was a mattress, but it too was covered in the rust colored substance. There was a couple of pipes where Weiss assumed a sink and a toilet were supposed to go, but a sink or toilet were not present. Several chunks of an unknown material were scattered throughout the room. Weiss hoped they were just pieces of rock or an unknown kind of dust.

Until she saw the foot.

Then she knew what everything was, and tore her mask off before puking over the side of the chair. After she felt somewhat stable she got up from the chair and stumbled towards the door.

'What, or who, could have done that?' she thought, stumbling out of the room. The thought of the scene made her dry heave.

Weiss stumbled across the hall and opened the door, which closed behind her after she entered the room. In an attempt to take her mind off Room 20, Weiss concentrated on the task at hand: escaping. She looked around the storage room, but it was completely empty except for a single wooden box covered in some type of runes. The box was approximately six feet tall. Weiss approached it, wondering what kind of suit was inside the box, along with how she was going to open it. She touched the box, which was very smooth despite it's rough appearance. She slid her hand over the surface towards one of the runes. She touched it, and the rune changed from a black to a light blue color. Weiss quickly retracted her hand, and the rune returned to it's original black color.

"Never seen dust like that…" Weiss said softly to herself. She went to touch the rune again, but before she could touch it, she heard the door behind her open. She readied herself for combat, but then looked at her left hand and realized that she had forgotten her knife in the other room. She looked around the room for a place to hide or a different weapon, but stopped her search when she heard a familiar sound. It wasn't a welcoming sound however.

D, D#, G, F#

A man in a white lab coat walked into the room and looked at Weiss. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply and slowly through his nose before opening his eyes again. He looked at Weiss for a few seconds before speaking.

"Why does he have to be this way? Does he really think this will make a difference?"

Weiss just looked at him silently. His voice was eerily reminiscent of her father's. The man continued.

"This won't change anything. I'm sure he knows that. I guess the least I can do is let you go. You're just a bystander in all of this. Why did he have to drag you in?"

The man walked over to the box and pressed a few of the runes on its surface. The sides of the box opened, revealing a suit of armor.

The armor was made out of various parts of the creatures of Grimm, from Beowolf faceplates to Death Stalker tail plates. It reminded Weiss of a smaller version of the Giant Armor she fought.

The man rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Get into it, it will form to your shape. Just get in and go..."

Weiss slowly walked towards the back of the armor, and it automatically opened. She stepped inside the armor and it fit her perfectly. The back of the armor closed after she entered it. She took a step out of the box, and she noted how light the armor was. The scientist began shaking his head.

"Just walk around like normal. You can't get shot anyways. Please just go before I change my mind."

Weiss looked at the man one more time before running out of the room. She ran down the hallway and entered the elevator, which was still open. She pressed the button that lead to the top floor. As she was riding up an explosion rocked the elevator. Weiss grabbed the sides to stabilize herself.

'What is going on up there?' she thought. The elevator stopped and the doors opened, answering Weiss' question.

It was looked like a war zone outside the elevator. Weiss stepped exited the elevator and looked around. Bullet holes and craters littered the once pristine building. A empty black duffel bag sat just to her right. There was a lot of gunfire happening close to Weiss, and it sounded like it was to her left. She didn't trust the stability of the armor, so she ran to her right in search of an exit. She quickly found one in the form of a broken window. She stepped out of the window and was immediately knocked down. It felt like something had pushed her down by her head, something moving really fast. She got up but was knocked back again, this time the push was from her chest. She then realized something.

She wasn't getting pushed down, she was getting shot down.

The armor was holding for now, but Weiss didn't want to trust it anymore than she needed to. She got up and and began running, looking for the shooter as she did. After a few seconds of scanning, she located him. There was a sniper sitting behind an armored car at the entrance to the facility, which she estimated to be about 400 yards away. Weiss changed her course and began running in a zigzag pattern towards the sniper. She heard several shots fly past her, but she eventually reached the sniper's position.

The frightened man drew his handgun and fired several shots at Weiss, all of which met their mark but to no effect. Weiss dove over the car and tackled the man. He struggled, but the combined weight of the armor and Weiss barely held him down.

"Stop fighting, I'm not going to kill you." Weiss said with a false calmness. Internally she was panicking, frantically trying to think about what she was going to do next. After a few seconds the man gave up his struggle and closed his eyes.

"I just want your car." Weiss demanded. "And don't try anything funny."

The man sighed. "The doors are unlocked and the keys are in the ignition. Just don't scratch it."

Weiss got off the man and backed up towards the car. After bumping into it she reached for the door, opened it, and got in. She then turned the car on and drove around the man, who was still laying on the ground. After Weiss lost sight of the facility in her rearview mirror she gunned it towards the city with her mind set on her destination.

* * *

[Earlier that day]

* * *

Jace ran down the hallway. He remained in the guard suit he was previously wearing, as he knew it wouldn't matter if he changed or not. He only had one goal at the moment.

Take The Creator down.

Jace saw him standing outside the room where Weiss used to be.

"Hey!" He yelled "Give me your money, or die?"

The Creator and the three guards turned around and looked at Jace. The guards raised their weapons, but Jace was too quick. He shot four times, killing the guards and The Creator with a single shot to each of their heads. The shots rang out throughout the building, causing all the workers to run away from the sound and the guards to begin running towards the sounds.

Jace looked down at the bodies "Guess they didn't want to give me their money." He began laughing to himself, but only for a few seconds. He determined he only had a few seconds left before more guards showed up to possibly fight him. Jace checked the now limp body of The Creator, just to be sure he was dead. He knelt down next to the corpse but to his dismay there was no greymatter and blood, only chunks of metal and circuits.

"Damn…" he muttered to himself "I should have known he wouldn't take a risk like that." Jace stood up and sighed, sliding his pistol into the waistband of his pants in the small of his back. He began walking down the hallway, and said aloud "Let's look for a terminal, shall we?"

"Do we have to?" Sashimasu asked "I don't really like doing boring stuff."

Jace's response was laughter as he knelt down again. He removed the bag's strap from his shoulder and unzipped the bag. He reached inside the bag and remove an assault rifle and set it on the floor. He then reached back inside the bag and produced a tactical vest, which he slid over his torso. He picked up the assault rifle and stood up.

"Alright Sashi, R.O.E. is as follows…"

"Roe? Like fish eggs?"

"No. R.O.E. as in rules of engagement. I'm sure you're gunna want to take a few shots right?"

"Well yeah but…"

"Alright well listen then. No civilians. This isn't a shooting gallery. Only shoot at someone or something if you know it's going to shoot you back. Don't shoot people who are surrendering. Robots probably won't surrender, but humans will. Our only true target was The Creator, but he hid so we got to go now. We'll have another chance to get him I'm sure. Just stick to the R.O.E. alright?"

"Got it!"

"Alright, then let's get to it."

Jace began to run around the building towards the front entrance. He figured that was where most of the vehicles that he could easily steal would be located in a few minutes. His current destination was the security terminal that was most likely behind the front desk. After a few more seconds of running, the front desk was within Jace's sight. There were three guards between Jace and the desk but they were quickly dispatched by his rifle, clearing the way to the desk.

Jace quickly searched the guards in hopes of finding any kind of useful equipment such as grenades, med-packs, or even Dust crystals. To his dismay, he only found a smoke grenade but he took it anyways. After clipping the grenade to his belt he made his way over to the desk

"Alright Sashi, keep your eyes open for a terminal or button or something similar." Jace said.

"I can only see as much as you, so I guess I will." Sashimasu replied.

Jace sighed, but continued scanning the desk for anything that could lead him to a computer. After a few seconds he spotted a long, rectangular set of lines in the table. After climbing over the desk he pushed down on it, and the lines depressed a few centimeters. He released his hand and a screen slid up from the table. A holographic keyboard and trackpad appeared below the screen.

"Perfect." Jace said. He looked around the screen and located a type of messaging software. Jace located one, and began typing into the program:

To: (Atlas Biotech Security Forces) (Atlesian Military Lieutenant, District 16) (Atlas Security Conglomerate)

From: (Desk Terminal 7: Jade Greene)

Subject: robbery lmao

Message: ay im out here robbing this place, better send all these army dudes. already killed like a billion guards, im crazy! haha lmao im only gunna take like all the secret formulas and armor and free all the test subjects. Kthxbai

-dude robbing this place, ill shoot ur d1ck off lmao 1337 skillz

Jace reviewed his message.

"You're really going to send that out? There's probably going to be a bunch of people coming anyways. Why try to get more out here?"

"More fun..?" Jace replied hesitantly.

"Good point."

"Let's get back to it."

Jace vaulted over the desk and looked around. He had to get to a more easily defendable position than the one he was currently in. He had a plan in mind, but in order to execute it he had to risk getting shot and dying. It seemed like a valid plan to him, with nothing out of the ordinary. He made his way to a nearby door and entered the room behind it, which was a small broom closet. He took off his tactical vest and sat down, facing the door. He opened one of the pouches on the right side of the vest and produced a beta-magazine for his rifle, which he loaded into it. After picking up the rifle again he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. A few seconds of silence passed.

"You can't seriously be thinking that Jace. Now's not the time. I'll get too… too… ahh!" Sashimasu let out a low moan "Jace, stop! We need to fight!" Jace remained silent. His hair began to grow and change colors, from light brown to a vibrant purple. His limbs and torso began to grow shorter, and he began to grow breasts. His eyes, though closed, changed from emerald to yellow. He was changing into Sashimasu's body, but very slowly.

"Jace!" Sashimasu said "Stop! Please!" She let out another low moan "You remember…remember what happened last time!"

Jace smiled "I know, now take control." he whispered, now fully changed into her body.

Sahimasu dropped the rifle and moved her hands to her groin. She let out a loud moan and fell to her side. "Jace~ stop!"

Sashimasu inhaled deeply, and began fumbling with the button on her pants. However, she stopped after hearing something. She sat up and grabbed the rifle, pointing it at the door. Without hesitating she unloaded the entire magazine into various parts of the door and walls surrounding it. She stood up and exited the closet through the remnants of the door. A few bodies lay outside, each shot several times in various parts of the body. Sashimasu looked around her. Down each side of the hallway was a large group of soldiers, composed of robots and humans alike. They all had their weapons trained on Sashimasu.

"Drop the gun!" someone shouted from one of the groups. Sashimasu compiled and dropped the gun to her feet.

"Get on the ground and keep your hands in front of you!"

Slowly, Sashimasu moved her hands down her sides. She hooked her thumbs on the sides of her pants and pulled them down to her ankles before laying down on the ground. The pistol that was in her waistband clattered to the floor, along with the smoke grenade that was on her belt. There was a small ping sound as she laid down on the floor, her hands in front of her. She began twirling something around her right index finger. It was circular and had a straight part sticking out of one end.

One if the soldiers noticed it."Grenade!"

Several of the guards dove down to avoid the suspected blast. The grenade made a pop, and the hallway began to fill with a thick grey smoke. Sashimasu used this distraction to her advantage. She jumped up and transformed her arms into a deep black set of Beowolf claws. She quickly cut her pants off so they would not slow her down. She inhaled deeply and tilted her head back, letting out a ear-splitting screech. The majority of the soldiers ripped off headsets or covered their now-ringing ears while falling to the ground. The robots, however, were unaffected. They began firing at Sashimasu, who quickly reacted to the shots. She ran towards the group of soldiers to her left, dismantling the robots with ease. She then turned to the other group of robots. Sashimasu ran towards them, but before she could reach them she caught a bullet in her left shoulder.

She toppled to the ground and lay motionless, her claws disappearing. She was lying outside the closet she had recently exited from. After a few seconds the robots advanced, standing over her limp body. Their guns were all trained on different parts of her to ensure maximum coverage in case she tried to do anything dangerous. The human soldiers regained their hearing and advanced upon her too, until she was surrounded with approximately ten robots and fifteen humans. After a moment of silence, one of the humans spoke to Sashimasu.

"Hey! Get up! Don't try anything!"

Sashimasu slid her right hand slowly under her chin and then down towards her stomach, stopping at her waist.

"Hey! Show me your hands! Do it now!"

Sashimasu moved her right hand down a little more, and it was how just under her right thigh. Several soldiers noticed a hint of black appear shortly on her thigh before disappearing.

"One last chance! Show me your hands or we will shoot you!" the soldiers all readied their weapons.

Sashimasu let out a light laugh. The soldiers looked at each other in confusion.

"What's so funny?" One of them asked "We really will shoot you. Now get up slowly."

"Alright, I'm getting up." Sashimasu replied. "Just don't look at me too much, I'm only eighteen."

She stood up, and caught several of the soldiers off guard. Her shirt and underwear had been mysteriously torn off.

She stood in front of the soldiers fully nude.

A few looked away, others ogled at the sight of her body. The robots did nothing. Sashimasu acted quickly, lunging at the soldier in front of her. She grabbed him, using his body as a shield from the robots and other soldiers. She held the dazed soldier in a headlock with her left arm, putting as much of her body behind his as she could. She knew she had to act quickly as her back was now against a window and she was holding the soldier with her weakened arm.

Sashimasu grabbed his sidearm with her right hand and shot out the window. She dropped the gun and looked at the soldier's gear, locating a few breaching charges on his left hip. She activated one and then pushed the guard away from her. He began struggling to remove the charges from his body, and several of the other soldiers began to ran away after noticing the primed explosives. Sashimasu followed their lead and ran out of the broken window across the lawn. She ran for a few yards before hearing an explosion which shook the ground beneath her. She reached the fence and assessed her current situation.

Sashimasu was about 300 yards from the main entrance. There was a forest in front of her on the other side of the fence. She could see several vehicles in the entrance area, along with several people. She couldn't tell if they were all soldiers, but she wasn't going to find out. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, thinking of her options. She opened her eyes and looked ahead of her. She changed her arms and legs into those of a Beowolf and slashed a hole in the fence, then she ran into the woods in front of her.


End file.
